Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) CFO Joseph Anthony Mara, Jr. Sells 25,000 Shares of Company Stock

Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL) CFO Joseph Mara, Jr. sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.26, for a total value of $1,456,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 16,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $942,996.36. This trade represents a 60.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Vericel Stock Performance

Shares of Vericel stock opened at $57.42 on Friday. Vericel Corporation has a 52-week low of $28.95 and a 52-week high of $59.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 89.72 and a beta of 1.08. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $42.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.30.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $85.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.95 million. Vericel had a net margin of 10.27% and a return on equity of 9.09%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.10 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Vericel Corporation will post 0.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vericel

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Vericel in the second quarter worth about $360,023,000. Aberdeen Group plc lifted its holdings in Vericel by 204.7% in the third quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 2,164,250 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $86,873,000 after buying an additional 1,454,012 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Vericel during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $88,662,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in Vericel by 19.7% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,098,771 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $35,347,000 after acquiring an additional 180,761 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Vericel by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 844,755 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $27,173,000 after acquiring an additional 29,135 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on VCEL. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Vericel from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. HC Wainwright boosted their target price on Vericel from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 6th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Vericel from $52.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 6th. Stephens upped their target price on Vericel from $55.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group set a $60.00 price target on Vericel in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $62.00.

Vericel Company Profile

Vericel Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing cell therapies and other treatments for serious conditions. Based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the company markets its products primarily in the United States. Its products include MACI, an implant made from a patient’s own cultured cartilage cells used to repair certain cartilage defects in the knee, and Epicel, a cultured skin graft used to treat patients with deep burns. Vericel also commercializes NexoBrid in the United States, an enzyme-based treatment for removing dead tissue from severe thermal burns.