Neuberger Berman Group LLC Sells 32,663 Shares of Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL)

Key Points

• Neuberger Berman Group LLC has reduced its stake in Vericel Corporation by 22.8%, selling 32,663 shares, and now holds about 110,603 shares valued at approximately $4.9 million.
• Vericel's recent earnings report showed a revenue of $63.24 million, which was below analysts' expectations, despite a year-over-year revenue increase of 20.1%.
• Following several rating changes, Vericel currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus price target of $60.33.

Neuberger Berman Group LLC decreased its holdings in Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 22.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 110,603 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 32,663 shares during the quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC owned 0.22% of Vericel worth $4,935,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VCEL. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in shares of Vericel during the 4th quarter worth approximately $57,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Vericel by 34.8% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,895 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $129,000 after buying an additional 748 shares in the last quarter. Gagnon Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Vericel during the 1st quarter worth approximately $137,000. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in shares of Vericel by 29.9% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,071 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $137,000 after buying an additional 706 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of Vericel during the 4th quarter worth approximately $215,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on VCEL. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $67.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on shares of 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 lowered shares of Vericel from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Vericel presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.33.

Vericel Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of VCEL traded up $0.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $36.28. 654,735 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 633,788. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $39.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.84. The company has a market cap of $1.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 302.36 and a beta of 1.27. Vericel Corporation has a 1 year low of $33.09 and a 1 year high of $63.00.

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

Vericel Company Profile

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.