Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Buy"

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Veracyte from "strong-buy" to "buy", though the broader analyst sentiment remains positive with a Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of $47.57.
• Veracyte reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $0.52 beating estimates and revenue of $139.07 million also topping expectations. Revenue rose 21.5% year over year.
• The stock has been trading near its 52-week high, opening at $60.49 versus a high of $60.83, while insiders have sold shares in recent months and institutions have been adjusting positions.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

VCYT has been the subject of several other reports. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Veracyte from $48.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Veracyte in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded Veracyte from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Guggenheim dropped their price objective on Veracyte from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Veracyte from $48.00 to $37.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Veracyte currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.57.

Veracyte Stock Up 3.3%

Shares of VCYT opened at $60.49 on Friday. Veracyte has a twelve month low of $22.61 and a twelve month high of $60.83. The stock has a market cap of $4.83 billion, a PE ratio of 55.50 and a beta of 1.98. The business's 50-day moving average price is $43.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.82.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $139.07 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $130.36 million. Veracyte had a net margin of 16.25% and a return on equity of 9.07%. Veracyte's revenue was up 21.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.31 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Veracyte will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In other Veracyte news, SVP Annie Mcguire sold 10,204 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.02, for a total value of $398,160.08. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 143,708 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,607,486.16. This represents a 6.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider John Leite sold 13,975 shares of Veracyte stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.07, for a total value of $699,728.25. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 132,305 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,624,511.35. The trade was a 9.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last three months, insiders sold 206,696 shares of company stock worth $10,079,058. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veracyte

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in Veracyte during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Veracyte in the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 159.8% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 289.9% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,201 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 893 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Veracyte by 146.4% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,454 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 864 shares in the last quarter.

About Veracyte

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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