Vericel Corporation $VCEL Shares Purchased by Bank of America Corp DE

Key Points

• Bank of America increased its Vericel stake by 19.7% in the first quarter, acquiring 180,761 additional shares for a total holding of 1.10 million shares valued at approximately $35.3 million.
• Vericel reported quarterly revenue of $77.46 million, up 22.5% year over year, and EPS of $0.04, exceeding analysts’ expectations. Shares opened at $44.20, with a 12-month range of $28.95 to $49.32.
• Analysts maintain a positive outlook, giving Vericel a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $58.40. However, insiders sold 52,232 shares worth roughly $2.3 million over the past three months.

Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 19.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,098,771 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 180,761 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 2.15% of Vericel worth $35,347,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VCEL. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vericel during the first quarter valued at approximately $242,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in Vericel by 6.2% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 31,445 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,847 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Vericel by 13.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 371,486 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $16,576,000 after purchasing an additional 44,333 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in Vericel by 9.0% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 123,028 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $5,490,000 after purchasing an additional 10,191 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in Vericel by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 277,253 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $11,797,000 after purchasing an additional 13,422 shares during the last quarter.

Vericel Price Performance

NASDAQ VCEL opened at $44.20 on Friday. Vericel Corporation has a 12 month low of $28.95 and a 12 month high of $49.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.26 billion, a PE ratio of 94.04 and a beta of 1.06. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $44.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.90.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) 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 period last year, the company posted ($0.01) EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 22.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vericel Corporation will post 0.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vericel

In other Vericel news, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 4,500 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.90, for a total value of $220,050.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,078 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,714.20. The trade was a 80.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sean C. Flynn sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.64, for a total value of $684,600.00. Following the completion of 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. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,232 shares of company stock valued at $2,304,217. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on VCEL shares. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $58.00 target price (up from $54.00) on shares of Vericel in a research report on Friday, July 31st. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Vericel from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Vericel from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. 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. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vericel has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $58.40.

About Vericel

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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