Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Invests $1.03 Million in Vericel Corporation $VCEL

Key Points

• Oppenheimer Asset Management initiated a $1.03 million position in Vericel during the second quarter by purchasing 23,062 shares. Other institutional investors also increased their holdings.
• Analyst sentiment is favorable, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $58.40, compared with Vericel’s reported opening price of $44.20.
• Vericel exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.04 in earnings per share and $77.46 million in revenue, up 22.5% year over year; however, insiders sold more than 52,000 shares worth approximately $2.3 million over the prior three months.

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 23,062 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $1,026,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Vericel by 17.7% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,886 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its position in shares of Vericel by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 25,744 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $927,000 after buying an additional 353 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vericel by 13.7% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,937 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $125,000 after buying an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Vericel by 0.8% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 45,404 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,932,000 after buying an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vericel by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 11,698 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $421,000 after buying an additional 410 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on VCEL. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $58.00 price target (up from $54.00) on shares of Vericel in a report on Friday, July 31st. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Vericel from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Vericel from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group set a $60.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $58.40.

Vericel Stock Performance

Shares of VCEL opened at $44.20 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 94.04 and a beta of 1.06. Vericel Corporation has a one year low of $28.95 and a one year high of $49.32. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $44.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.91.

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

Insider Activity at Vericel

In other Vericel news, insider Sean C. Flynn sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.64, for a total transaction of $684,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,647 shares in the company, valued at $75,169.08. This represents a 90.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 4,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.90, for a total transaction of $220,050.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,078 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $52,714.20. This represents a 80.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 52,232 shares of company stock worth $2,304,217 over the last three months. 7.60% of the stock is 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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