Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Vericel Corporation shares gapped down after BTIG Research downgraded the stock from a buy rating to a neutral rating, opening at $31.85 down from a previous close of $33.23.
• Despite the downgrade, four analysts maintain a "Buy" rating on the stock with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.40.
• The company's quarterly earnings report showed a 20.1% increase in revenue year-over-year, totaling $63.24 million, with earnings beating analysts' expectations.

Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) shares gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday after BTIG Research downgraded the stock from a buy rating to a neutral rating. The stock had previously closed at $33.23, but opened at $31.85. Vericel shares last traded at $31.15, with a volume of 120,872 shares changing hands.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on shares of Vericel from $61.00 to $58.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $67.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vericel presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $60.40.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vericel

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in Vericel by 13.7% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,937 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $125,000 after buying an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming lifted its holdings in Vericel by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 10,428 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $465,000 after buying an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in Vericel by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 45,404 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,932,000 after buying an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its holdings in Vericel by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 14,795 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $630,000 after buying an additional 408 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scholtz & Company LLC raised its stake in shares of Vericel by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Scholtz & Company LLC now owns 50,573 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,152,000 after purchasing an additional 454 shares in the last quarter.

Vericel Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 264.02 and a beta of 1.33. The business's 50 day moving average price is $35.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.21.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $63.24 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $64.61 million. Vericel had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 2.47%. Vericel's quarterly revenue was up 20.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.10) earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Vericel Corporation will post 0.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Vericel

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.