Neuberger Berman Group LLC Sells 32,663 Shares of Vericel Corporation $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 reduced its stake in Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 22.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund 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 reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Vericel by 1.6% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,273,494 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $101,443,000 after purchasing an additional 35,345 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its position in shares of Vericel by 1.6% in the first quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,476,718 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $65,891,000 after purchasing an additional 22,579 shares during the period. GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its position in Vericel by 12.4% during the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 1,432,434 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $63,915,000 after acquiring an additional 158,470 shares during the period. Geneva Capital Management LLC grew its position in Vericel by 24.2% during the first quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 1,365,744 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $60,939,000 after acquiring an additional 265,956 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Vericel by 119.3% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,288,921 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $70,775,000 after acquiring an additional 701,064 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VCEL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Vericel from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price objective on Vericel from $61.00 to $58.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $60.33.

Vericel Trading Down 2.2%

Vericel stock traded down $0.81 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $35.36. 269,991 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 617,703. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $39.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.57. The firm has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 294.69 and a beta of 1.27. Vericel Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $33.09 and a fifty-two week high of $63.00.

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

Vericel 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.