437,604 Shares in Veracyte, Inc. $VCYT Purchased by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon purchased 437,604 Veracyte shares worth approximately $25.7 million, giving it a 0.54% stake; several other institutional investors also increased their holdings.
• Veracyte reported quarterly EPS of $0.54, beating estimates by $0.13, while revenue rose 15.5% year over year to $150.32 million. Despite the results, shares were down 4.2% and opened at $43.34.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $54.33, although some firms recently reduced their targets.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 437,604 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $25,700,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned 0.54% of Veracyte at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VCYT. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Veracyte by 21.2% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,121 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its stake in shares of Veracyte by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 18,100 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $762,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Veracyte by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 71,095 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,922,000 after buying an additional 566 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Veracyte by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 7,894 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $332,000 after acquiring an additional 576 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Veracyte by 159.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 679 shares in the last quarter.

Veracyte Stock Down 4.2%

Shares of Veracyte stock opened at $43.34 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.86. Veracyte, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $29.38 and a fifty-two week high of $60.91. The firm has a market cap of $3.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.74 and a beta of 1.95.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.13. Veracyte had a net margin of 20.37% and a return on equity of 9.26%. The business had revenue of $150.32 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $144.59 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.44 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Veracyte, Inc. will post 1.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Veracyte from $45.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Veracyte from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Veracyte from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Stephens reduced their target price on Veracyte from $68.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Veracyte from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $54.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Veracyte news, EVP Annie Mcguire sold 3,176 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.76, for a total value of $158,037.76. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 137,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,829,062.40. This represents a 2.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 3,561 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.73, for a total transaction of $177,088.53. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 173,280 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,617,214.40. This represents a 2.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 162,492 shares of company stock worth $8,151,197 over the last ninety days. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Veracyte Company Profile

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.

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