StockNews.com Downgrades Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) to Sell

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report issued on Monday.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on VCEL. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a report on Friday, February 28th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Vericel from $61.00 to $51.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vericel currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $60.86.

Vericel Trading Up 2.2%

NASDAQ VCEL traded up $0.92 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $42.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 649,480 shares, compared to its average volume of 404,862. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 710.95 and a beta of 1.31. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $43.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.26. Vericel has a twelve month low of $37.39 and a twelve month high of $63.00.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.09) by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $52.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $53.86 million. Vericel had a return on equity of 1.48% and a net margin of 1.56%. Vericel's revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.08) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Vericel will post 0.14 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vericel

In related news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 24,850 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 260,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,906,229.06. The trade was a 8.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vericel

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in shares of Vericel by 27.3% during the first quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 156,489 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $6,983,000 after buying an additional 33,542 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vericel during the first quarter valued at about $5,751,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Vericel by 1.6% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,273,494 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $101,443,000 after buying an additional 35,345 shares during the period. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Vericel by 91.5% during the first quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. now owns 47,337 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,112,000 after buying an additional 22,617 shares during the period. Finally, Cynosure Group LLC increased its position in shares of Vericel by 32.7% during the first quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 6,615 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 1,629 shares during the period.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.