Wells Fargo & Company MN Boosts Position in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 11.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 69,975 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,363 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned approximately 0.14% of Vericel worth $3,842,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VCEL. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Vericel by 119.3% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,288,921 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $70,775,000 after purchasing an additional 701,064 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Vericel during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,126,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its position in Vericel by 66.3% in the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,258,416 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $69,100,000 after acquiring an additional 501,736 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its stake in Vericel by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,454,139 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $79,847,000 after acquiring an additional 162,419 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Vericel by 26.5% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 571,194 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $31,364,000 after acquiring an additional 119,574 shares during the period.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vericel

In related news, Director Robert L. Md Zerbe sold 2,500 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.50, for a total transaction of $156,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 26,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,662,187.50. This trade represents a 8.59 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 26,592 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.78, for a total transaction of $1,217,381.76. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 259,997 shares in the company, valued at $11,902,662.66. The trade was a 9.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 58,942 shares of company stock valued at $2,724,548 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 5.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on VCEL shares. StockNews.com upgraded Vericel from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 8th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on Vericel from $61.00 to $51.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Vericel presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $60.86.

Vericel Trading Down 3.3 %

VCEL stock traded down $1.36 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $39.73. The company had a trading volume of 453,277 shares, compared to its average volume of 394,523. Vericel Co. has a 52 week low of $37.76 and a 52 week high of $63.00. The stock has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 662.28 and a beta of 1.61. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $45.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.28.

Vericel 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.