Fisher Asset Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Veracyte, Inc. $VCYT

Fisher Asset Management LLC cut its position in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) by 11.0% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 755,316 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 93,297 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Veracyte were worth $20,416,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VCYT. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Veracyte in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Veracyte during the first quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in Veracyte by 23,936.4% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,644 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $78,000 after acquiring an additional 2,633 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC grew its holdings in Veracyte by 1,279.9% in the second quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 8,031 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $217,000 after purchasing an additional 7,449 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AXQ Capital LP purchased a new position in Veracyte in the second quarter worth $245,000.

Insider Activity at Veracyte

In other news, Director Jens Holstein sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.36, for a total value of $423,600.00. Following the sale, the director owned 27,199 shares in the company, valued at $1,152,149.64. This represents a 26.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Evan/ Fa Jones sold 43,196 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.06, for a total transaction of $1,946,411.76. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 30,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,372,888.08. This trade represents a 58.64% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 90,882 shares of company stock worth $3,876,427 in the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Veracyte Stock Performance

Shares of VCYT opened at $47.75 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $38.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $31.77. The stock has a market cap of $3.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 125.66 and a beta of 1.83. Veracyte, Inc. has a one year low of $22.61 and a one year high of $50.71.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The biotechnology company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.19. Veracyte had a return on equity of 7.23% and a net margin of 6.12%.The firm had revenue of $131.87 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $124.62 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.33 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Veracyte, Inc. will post 0.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on Veracyte from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Veracyte from $40.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on Veracyte from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Veracyte in a report on Monday. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Veracyte from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Veracyte currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.38.

About Veracyte

Veracyte, Inc engages in the research, development and commercialization of diagnostic products. The firm’s portfolio includes Afirma, Percepta, and Envisia. It intends to treat thyroid cancer, improve lung cancer screening, and clarify the diagnosis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The company was founded by Bonnie H.