Insider Selling: Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Director Sells 1,864 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Veracyte director Muna Bhanji sold 1,864 shares at an average price of $42.97, generating approximately $80,096. The transaction reduced her ownership by 4.18% and was conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.
• Veracyte shares were down 0.5% at $44.67, with the stock trading between a 52-week range of $29.45 to $60.91. The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.54 and revenue of $150.32 million, exceeding analyst expectations.
• Analyst sentiment remains a Moderate Buy, with a consensus price target of $54.33, although several firms recently lowered their targets while others maintained bullish ratings.

Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) Director Muna Bhanji sold 1,864 shares of Veracyte stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.97, for a total value of $80,096.08. Following the sale, the director owned 42,718 shares in the company, valued at $1,835,592.46. The trade was a 4.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Veracyte Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:VCYT traded down $0.21 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $44.67. The company had a trading volume of 673,666 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,097,795. The stock has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.68 and a beta of 1.93. The company's 50 day moving average price is $51.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.06. Veracyte, Inc. has a 52-week low of $29.45 and a 52-week high of $60.91.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $150.32 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $144.59 million. Veracyte had a net margin of 20.37% and a return on equity of 9.26%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.44 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Veracyte, Inc. will post 1.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veracyte

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VCYT. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Veracyte by 21.2% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,121 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Veracyte by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 18,100 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $762,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in Veracyte by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 71,095 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,922,000 after purchasing an additional 566 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Veracyte by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 7,894 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $332,000 after purchasing an additional 576 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Veracyte by 159.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on VCYT shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Veracyte from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Veracyte from $47.00 to $44.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Veracyte from $66.00 to $54.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price target on Veracyte from $60.00 to $50.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Veracyte from $45.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Veracyte has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $54.33.

Veracyte Company Profile

Veracyte, Inc is a genomic diagnostics company focused on improving diagnostic accuracy and patient care through advanced molecular testing. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in South San Francisco, California, the company develops and commercializes minimally invasive genomic tests that aid in the diagnosis of thyroid, lung and other diseases. Veracyte's proprietary platform analyzes gene expression patterns in clinical samples to help physicians make more informed treatment decisions, reducing unnecessary surgeries and improving patient outcomes.

The company's flagship product, the Afirma Genomic Sequencing Classifier, is designed to assess thyroid nodules with indeterminate cytology, helping clinicians distinguish benign from suspicious nodules.

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