First Trust Advisors LP Reduces Holdings in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

First Trust Advisors LP decreased its holdings in shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 83.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,142 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 26,776 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP's holdings in Vericel were worth $282,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its position in Vericel by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 23,900 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,312,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Vericel during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $280,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Vericel during the 4th quarter worth approximately $956,000. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vericel in the 4th quarter worth approximately $261,000. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its stake in Vericel by 82.5% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,707 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $149,000 after buying an additional 1,224 shares during the last quarter.

Vericel Trading Down 1.1%

NASDAQ VCEL traded down $0.49 on Thursday, hitting $41.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 130,035 shares, compared to its average volume of 406,217. The firm has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 695.70 and a beta of 1.31. Vericel Co. has a 52-week low of $37.39 and a 52-week high of $63.00. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $42.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.15.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.23) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by ($0.14). Vericel had a net margin of 1.56% and a return on equity of 1.48%. The company had revenue of $52.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $53.86 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.08) EPS. The business's revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Vericel Co. will post 0.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on VCEL shares. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of Vericel from $61.00 to $51.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Vericel from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Vericel has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 24,850 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.89, for a total value of $1,040,966.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 260,354 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,906,229.06. This represents a 8.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 5.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.