Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Given New $40.00 Price Target at Canaccord Genuity Group
by Amy Steele · The Cerbat GemVeracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT – Get Free Report) had its price target cut by research analysts at Canaccord Genuity Group from $43.00 to $40.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “hold” rating on the biotechnology company’s stock. Canaccord Genuity Group’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 19.89% from the company’s previous close.
A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on VCYT. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Veracyte in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Zacks Research lowered Veracyte from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Veracyte in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Guggenheim reduced their target price on Veracyte from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Veracyte from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.83.
View Our Latest Stock Report on VCYT
Veracyte Stock Performance
VCYT stock traded down $0.44 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $33.37. The stock had a trading volume of 126,013 shares, compared to its average volume of 884,568. The stock has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a PE ratio of 40.25 and a beta of 1.96. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.28. Veracyte has a 52-week low of $22.61 and a 52-week high of $50.71.
Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The biotechnology company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $140.64 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $135.79 million. Veracyte had a return on equity of 8.05% and a net margin of 12.83%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.06 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Veracyte will post 0.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, SVP Annie Mcguire sold 6,658 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.55, for a total transaction of $236,691.90. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 94,706 shares in the company, valued at $3,366,798.30. This trade represents a 6.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider John Leite sold 5,260 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.19, for a total value of $185,099.40. Following the sale, the insider owned 107,580 shares in the company, valued at $3,785,740.20. This trade represents a 4.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 75,782 shares of company stock valued at $2,722,097 over the last quarter. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veracyte
Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 34.8% in the 3rd quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 409,601 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $14,062,000 after buying an additional 105,721 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 667.9% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 435,761 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $14,960,000 after buying an additional 379,014 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 7,370,467 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $253,028,000 after buying an additional 1,048,692 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 23.6% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,324,965 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $45,486,000 after buying an additional 253,033 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Iron Triangle Partners LP acquired a new stake in Veracyte in the 3rd quarter worth about $16,650,000.
About Veracyte
Veracyte, Inc is a genomic diagnostics company focused on improving diagnostic accuracy and patient care through advanced molecular testing. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in South San Francisco, California, the company develops and commercializes minimally invasive genomic tests that aid in the diagnosis of thyroid, lung and other diseases. Veracyte’s proprietary platform analyzes gene expression patterns in clinical samples to help physicians make more informed treatment decisions, reducing unnecessary surgeries and improving patient outcomes.
The company’s flagship product, the Afirma Genomic Sequencing Classifier, is designed to assess thyroid nodules with indeterminate cytology, helping clinicians distinguish benign from suspicious nodules.