LPL Financial LLC Has $2.92 Million Holdings in Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Vericel Corporation by 25%, owning approximately 70,855 shares valued at $2.92 million as of the latest reporting period.
• Vericel reported earnings of ($0.01) per share for the quarter, beating estimates, with revenues of $63.24 million reflecting a year-over-year increase of 20.1%.
• Analysts currently rate Vericel as a Moderate Buy with a consensus target price of $60.33, following various rating changes by multiple brokerages.

LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 25.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 70,855 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 14,181 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.14% of Vericel worth $2,921,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new position in shares of Vericel in the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vericel by 34.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,895 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 748 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of Vericel in the 4th quarter valued at about $215,000. Syon Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vericel in the 4th quarter valued at about $257,000. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vericel in the 1st quarter valued at about $266,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on VCEL. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $67.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price target on Vericel from $61.00 to $58.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Vericel from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $60.33.

Vericel Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of Vericel stock opened at $36.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 302.36 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $39.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.94. Vericel Corporation has a 12-month low of $33.09 and a 12-month high of $63.00.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.04) by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $63.24 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $64.61 million. Vericel had a return on equity of 2.47% and a net margin of 2.85%. The company's revenue was up 20.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.10) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vericel Corporation will post 0.14 earnings per share for the current year.

About Vericel

Vericel Corporation, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the research, development, manufacture, and distribution of cellular therapies for sports medicine and severe burn care markets in North America. The company markets autologous cell therapy products comprising MACI, an autologous cultured chondrocytes on porcine collagen membrane for the repair of symptomatic, and single or multiple full-thickness cartilage defects of the knee; Epicel, a permanent skin replacement humanitarian use device for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients with deep-dermal or full-thickness burns; and NexoBrid, a biological orphan product for eschar removal in adults with deep partial-thickness and/or full-thickness thermal burns.

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