Amundi Sells 116,588 Shares of Veracyte, Inc. $VCYT

Key Points

• Amundi cut its Veracyte stake by 90.6% in the first quarter, selling 116,588 shares and retaining 12,124 shares valued at approximately $391,000.
• Other institutional investors took a more bullish stance: First Trust increased its holdings by 64.9%, while Squarepoint Ops expanded its position by 770.6%; several firms also initiated new stakes.
• Veracyte reported quarterly earnings of $0.54 per share, beating estimates by $0.13, while revenue rose 15.5% year over year to $150.32 million. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $54.33, above the reported share price of $46.41.

Amundi reduced its holdings in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT - Free Report) by 90.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,124 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 116,588 shares during the period. Amundi's holdings in Veracyte were worth $391,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VCYT. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Veracyte during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,158,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 64.9% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,117,046 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $68,190,000 after purchasing an additional 833,543 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its position in shares of Veracyte by 770.6% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 897,387 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $24,256,000 after purchasing an additional 794,307 shares during the last quarter. Soleus Capital Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Veracyte during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $19,338,000. Finally, Iron Triangle Partners LP raised its holdings in Veracyte by 102.1% during the 4th quarter. Iron Triangle Partners LP now owns 980,391 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $41,274,000 after buying an additional 495,391 shares during the period.

Veracyte Price Performance

Shares of VCYT opened at $46.41 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.92 and a beta of 1.95. Veracyte, Inc. has a 1-year low of $27.79 and a 1-year high of $60.91. The company has a 50-day moving average of $53.71 and a 200 day moving average of $42.52.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on VCYT. Stephens lowered their price target on Veracyte from $68.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Veracyte from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Veracyte in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their target price on shares of Veracyte from $60.00 to $50.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Veracyte from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $54.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Karin Eastham sold 3,729 shares of Veracyte stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.89, for a total value of $197,226.81. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 15,097 shares in the company, valued at $798,480.33. The trade was a 19.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Jonathan Wygant sold 24,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.40, for a total transaction of $1,089,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 45,434 shares in the company, valued at $2,062,703.60. This trade represents a 34.57% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 196,492 shares of company stock valued at $9,680,897. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

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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