Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Grows Stock Holdings in Vericel Corporation $VCEL

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors increased its Vericel stake by 3.6% in the first quarter, holding 844,755 shares worth approximately $27.2 million, or 1.66% of the company.
• Vericel reported quarterly revenue of $77.46 million, up 22.5% year over year, and adjusted earnings of $0.04 per share, beating analyst expectations. The stock was recently trading at $45.36, with a market capitalization of about $2.32 billion.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, giving Vericel a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $58.40, while insiders sold more than 52,000 shares worth approximately $2.3 million over the past three months.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 3.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 844,755 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 29,135 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 1.66% of Vericel worth $27,173,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VCEL. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Vericel in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Vericel in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings 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 valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC boosted its holdings 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 valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 977 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vericel during the fourth quarter worth about $58,000.

Vericel Trading Down 2.1%

VCEL stock opened at $45.36 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $42.63 and a 200-day moving average of $37.57. Vericel Corporation has a 12-month low of $28.95 and a 12-month high of $49.32. The company has a market cap of $2.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 96.51 and a beta of 1.06.

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

Insider Transactions at Vericel

In related news, insider Sean C. Flynn sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.21, for a total value of $603,150.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,647 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $66,225.87. This represents a 90.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 4,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.90, for a total transaction of $220,050.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,078 shares of the company's stock, valued at $52,714.20. This trade represents a 80.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 52,232 shares of company stock worth $2,304,217. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VCEL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Vericel from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Vericel from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and set a $58.00 target price (up from $54.00) on shares of Vericel in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $60.00 price target on Vericel in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Vericel from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $58.40.

Vericel 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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