Vericel Corporation $VCEL Stock Sold by Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Conestoga Capital Advisors cut its Vericel stake by 24.5% in the third quarter, selling 510,789 shares. It retained 1.57 million shares, worth about $63.1 million at quarter-end.
• Analyst sentiment was broadly positive: four analysts rated VCEL a Buy and two a Hold, giving it a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $57.20.
• The article reported Vericel shares were up 10.7%; the stock opened at $45.48 and had a 52-week range of $28.95 to $49.32.

Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC lessened its position in Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 24.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,573,043 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 510,789 shares during the period. Vericel comprises 1.9% of Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC owned approximately 3.07% of Vericel worth $63,142,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VCEL. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC acquired a new position in Vericel in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,356,000. Man Group plc purchased a new position in shares of Vericel during the 2nd quarter worth $2,998,000. Scholtz & Company LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vericel during the second quarter worth $2,287,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Vericel during the second quarter worth $12,366,000. Finally, Madison Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vericel in the second quarter valued at $2,230,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $60.00 target price on Vericel in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Vericel from $58.00 to $52.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Vericel from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Vericel from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vericel presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $57.20.

Vericel Trading Up 10.7%

NASDAQ:VCEL opened at $45.48 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.33 billion, a PE ratio of 87.43 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $40.56 and a 200-day moving average of $38.73. Vericel Corporation has a 52 week low of $28.95 and a 52 week high of $49.32.

Vericel Company Profile

Vericel Corporation is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and marketing advanced cell therapies and regenerative medicine products. The company serves orthopedic and burn-care markets, with an emphasis on treatments that use a patient's own cells or biologic materials to support tissue repair and healing.

Vericel's primary orthopedic product is MACI, an autologous cultured chondrocyte implant used to repair symptomatic cartilage defects of the knee in adults.

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