50,484 Shares in Veracyte, Inc. $VCYT Bought by Cibc World Market Inc.

Key Points

• CIBC World Markets initiated a position in Veracyte by purchasing 50,484 shares valued at approximately $2.97 million, representing about 0.06% of the company. Several other institutional investors also increased their holdings.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with Veracyte receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $54.33, though some firms recently lowered targets and Morgan Stanley maintained an “underweight” rating.
• Veracyte reported quarterly EPS of $0.54, beating estimates of $0.41, while revenue reached $150.32 million, up 15.5% year over year. The stock opened at $44.29, below its 12-month high of $60.91.

Cibc World Market Inc. bought a new position in shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 50,484 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $2,965,000. Cibc World Market Inc. owned about 0.06% of Veracyte at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of VCYT. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of Veracyte by 23.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 28,712 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $852,000 after purchasing an additional 5,435 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Veracyte by 12.2% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 195,793 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $5,805,000 after purchasing an additional 21,330 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in Veracyte by 94.7% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 216,909 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $6,431,000 after purchasing an additional 105,499 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Veracyte by 54.1% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 42,762 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,268,000 after purchasing an additional 15,017 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Veracyte by 32.2% in the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 48,786 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,319,000 after buying an additional 11,889 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on VCYT. Stephens dropped their price target on Veracyte from $68.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on Veracyte from $45.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Veracyte from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Veracyte from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Veracyte from $47.00 to $44.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Veracyte presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $54.33.

Insider Activity at Veracyte

In other news, Director Karin Eastham sold 3,729 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.89, for a total transaction of $197,226.81. Following the sale, the director directly owned 15,097 shares in the company, valued at approximately $798,480.33. The trade was a 19.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 3,561 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.73, for a total value of $177,088.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 173,280 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,617,214.40. The trade was 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 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Veracyte Stock Up 0.6%

VCYT stock opened at $44.29 on Thursday. Veracyte, Inc. has a twelve month low of $28.25 and a twelve month high of $60.91. The company has a market cap of $3.56 billion, a PE ratio of 31.41 and a beta of 1.95. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $52.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.79.

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

Veracyte 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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