Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Given New $40.00 Price Target at Canaccord Genuity Group

Key Points

• Canaccord Genuity lowered Veracyte's price target to $40 (from $43) and maintained a "hold" rating, implying roughly a 19.9% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed — four Buys, three Holds and one Sell — with an average rating of Hold and an average target of $43.83; recent notable targets include Guggenheim $45 (buy), Needham $48 (buy) and Jefferies $45 (buy).
• Operationally, Veracyte beat quarterly expectations (EPS $0.53 vs $0.41; revenue $140.6M vs $135.8M, up 18.5% YoY), while insiders have sold about 75,782 shares in the past 90 days.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) had its price target lowered by investment analysts at Canaccord Genuity Group from $43.00 to $40.00 in a research note issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "hold" rating on the biotechnology company's stock. Canaccord Genuity Group's target price points to a potential upside of 19.89% from the company's current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on VCYT. Guggenheim lowered their price target on Veracyte from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 30th. Zacks Research cut Veracyte from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $48.00 price target on shares of Veracyte in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Veracyte in a report on Monday, April 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $45.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Veracyte from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, December 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Veracyte currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $43.83.

Veracyte Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VCYT traded down $0.44 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $33.37. 126,013 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 884,568. The company's 50 day moving average price is $33.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.28. The firm has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a PE ratio of 40.25 and a beta of 1.96. Veracyte has a 52 week low of $22.61 and a 52 week high of $50.71.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The biotechnology company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $140.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $135.79 million. Veracyte had a return on equity of 8.05% and a net margin of 12.83%.The firm's revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.06 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Veracyte will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In related news, insider John Leite sold 5,260 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.19, for a total value of $185,099.40. Following the transaction, the insider owned 107,580 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,785,740.20. This represents a 4.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Stapley sold 45,523 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.97, for a total value of $1,637,462.31. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 357,554 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,861,217.38. This trade represents a 11.29% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 75,782 shares of company stock worth $2,722,097 in the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Veracyte

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 34.8% during the 3rd quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 409,601 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $14,062,000 after purchasing an additional 105,721 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 667.9% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 435,761 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $14,960,000 after purchasing an additional 379,014 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 7,370,467 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $253,028,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048,692 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 23.6% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,324,965 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $45,486,000 after purchasing an additional 253,033 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Iron Triangle Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Veracyte during the 3rd quarter valued at $16,650,000.

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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