BlackRock Inc. Buys Shares of 8,092,226 Vericel Corporation $VCEL

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 8.09 million Vericel shares worth approximately $360 million, giving it an estimated 15.8% ownership stake.
• Analysts maintain a positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $58.40. Vericel also exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $0.04 EPS and $77.46 million in revenue.
• Vericel shares opened at $43.22, while insiders sold 52,232 shares worth approximately $2.3 million over the past three months.

BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 8,092,226 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $360,023,000. BlackRock Inc. owned about 15.80% of Vericel as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Vericel in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in Vericel during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Vericel by 116.5% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 970 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 522 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Vericel by 175.4% in the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 1,534 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 977 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vericel during the 4th quarter worth about $58,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on VCEL shares. Weiss Ratings raised Vericel from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $60.00 price target on Vericel in a report on Thursday, July 30th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Vericel from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $58.00 price objective (up from $54.00) on shares of Vericel in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $58.40.

Vericel Stock Up 2.2%

VCEL stock opened at $43.22 on Wednesday. Vericel Corporation has a twelve month low of $28.95 and a twelve month high of $49.32. The company has a market cap of $2.21 billion, a PE ratio of 91.96 and a beta of 1.06. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $44.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.23.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.03) by $0.07. The company had revenue of $77.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $72.70 million. Vericel had a return on equity of 6.91% and a net margin of 7.91%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 22.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.01) EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Vericel Corporation will post 0.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vericel

In other news, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.90, for a total value of $220,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,078 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,714.20. This represents a 80.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Joseph Anthony Mara, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.75, for a total transaction of $223,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 16,009 shares of the company's stock, valued at $716,402.75. The trade was a 23.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 52,232 shares of company stock worth $2,304,217 over the last three months. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vericel Company Profile

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.

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