Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) Hits New 12-Month Low – Should You Sell?
by Michael Walen · The Markets DailyVericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL – Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week low during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $28.95 and last traded at $29.52, with a volume of 116864 shares. The stock had previously closed at $30.82.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of research analysts recently weighed in on VCEL shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Vericel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Vericel in a report on Monday, December 29th. HC Wainwright lifted their price target on Vericel from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Leerink Partners reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $46.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on Vericel from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.00.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Vericel
Vericel Stock Down 4.5%
The firm has a market capitalization of $1.50 billion, a PE ratio of 94.85 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a 50-day moving average of $35.33 and a 200 day moving average of $35.77.
Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45. The firm had revenue of $92.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $92.66 million. Vericel had a return on equity of 5.17% and a net margin of 5.98%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.38 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Vericel Corporation will post 0.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Institutional Trading of Vericel
Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Vericel by 38.4% in the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 118,856 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $5,057,000 after acquiring an additional 32,976 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its stake in shares of Vericel by 174.0% in the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 64,387 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,026,000 after purchasing an additional 40,892 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of Vericel by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,664,578 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $59,941,000 after purchasing an additional 169,971 shares during the last quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vericel by 74.3% during the 2nd quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC now owns 398,960 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $16,976,000 after purchasing an additional 170,006 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aberdeen Group plc raised its position in Vericel by 159.5% in the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 542,866 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $17,084,000 after purchasing an additional 333,649 shares during the period.
About Vericel
Vericel Corporation is a biotechnology company specializing in the development, manufacturing and commercialization of cell-based therapies for patients with severe diseases and conditions. The company’s expertise lies in regenerative medicine, where it harnesses the power of autologous cell processing to create products designed to restore function and promote healing in damaged tissues.
Vericel currently markets two FDA-approved therapies. MACI® (autologous cultured chondrocytes on porcine collagen membrane) is indicated for the repair of symptomatic cartilage defects of the knee in adult patients.