Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $56.00.

VCEL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Leerink Partners reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $46.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on Vericel from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Vericel from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Vericel in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Vericel from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th.

Vericel Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VCEL opened at $33.33 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $34.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $35.84. The firm has a market cap of $1.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 107.52 and a beta of 1.20. Vericel has a 1 year low of $28.95 and a 1 year high of $45.97.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45. The firm had revenue of $92.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.66 million. Vericel had a return on equity of 5.17% and a net margin of 5.98%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 23.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.38 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Vericel will post 0.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vericel

In other news, insider Jonathan Mark Hopper sold 3,472 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total transaction of $121,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 75,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,644,460. This represents a 4.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vericel

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Vericel by 51.3% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 805 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vericel in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vericel in the third quarter worth $31,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Vericel in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Vericel by 116.5% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 970 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 522 shares during the period.

About Vericel

Vericel Corporation is a biotechnology company specializing in the development, manufacturing and commercialization of cell-based therapies for patients with severe diseases and conditions. The company’s expertise lies in regenerative medicine, where it harnesses the power of autologous cell processing to create products designed to restore function and promote healing in damaged tissues.

Vericel currently markets two FDA-approved therapies. MACI® (autologous cultured chondrocytes on porcine collagen membrane) is indicated for the repair of symptomatic cartilage defects of the knee in adult patients.