Vericel Corporation $VCEL Shares Acquired by Congress Asset Management Co.

Key Points

• Congress Asset Management Co. has increased its stake in Vericel Corporation by 18.0%, now owning approximately 3.46% of the company valued at $74.1 million.
• Vericel's shares are currently trading at $29.84, with a 52-week high of $63.00 and a market cap of $1.51 billion.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Vericel, with a consensus price target of $60.40, though Canaccord Genuity recently lowered its target price from $61.00 to $58.00.

Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 18.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,742,324 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 265,606 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. owned about 3.46% of Vericel worth $74,136,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Vericel by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 270,154 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $12,054,000 after buying an additional 7,222 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Vericel by 15.6% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 204,510 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $9,125,000 after purchasing an additional 27,526 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Vericel by 34.8% in the first 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. Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Vericel in the first quarter valued at about $812,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in Vericel by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 950,486 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $42,410,000 after purchasing an additional 55,436 shares in the last quarter.

Vericel Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ VCEL opened at $29.84 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $35.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.77. Vericel Corporation has a 52 week low of $29.24 and a 52 week high of $63.00. The stock has a market cap of $1.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 248.69 and a beta of 1.33.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.04) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $63.24 million for 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 firm's quarterly revenue was up 20.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.10) EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Vericel Corporation will post 0.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on VCEL shares. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on shares of Vericel from $61.00 to $58.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $67.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Finally, BTIG Research lowered shares of Vericel from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $60.40.

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.

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