Veracyte, Inc. $VCYT Shares Sold by Amova Asset Management Americas Inc.

Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. reduced its holdings in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT - Free Report) by 15.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,257,898 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 224,185 shares during the quarter. Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. owned 1.59% of Veracyte worth $52,958,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Veracyte by 23.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 28,712 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $852,000 after acquiring an additional 5,435 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 12.2% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 195,793 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $5,805,000 after purchasing an additional 21,330 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 94.7% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 216,909 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $6,431,000 after purchasing an additional 105,499 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 54.1% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 42,762 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,268,000 after purchasing an additional 15,017 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Veracyte by 32.2% in the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 48,786 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,319,000 after purchasing an additional 11,889 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VCYT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Veracyte from $48.00 to $37.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on shares of Veracyte from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Veracyte from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research lowered Veracyte from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on Veracyte from $48.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.57.

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In other news, CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 3,561 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.73, for a total transaction of $177,088.53. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 173,280 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,617,214.40. The trade was a 2.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, EVP Annie Mcguire sold 3,176 shares of Veracyte stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.76, for a total value of $158,037.76. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 137,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,829,062.40. This trade represents a 2.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 202,967 shares of company stock worth $9,881,831. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Veracyte Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VCYT opened at $49.24 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.17 and a beta of 1.98. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $38.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.20. Veracyte, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.61 and a 52 week high of $50.71.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.18. Veracyte had a net margin of 16.25% and a return on equity of 9.07%. The business had revenue of $139.07 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $130.36 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.31 EPS. Veracyte's quarterly revenue was up 21.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Veracyte, Inc. will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Veracyte

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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