BNP Paribas Financial Markets Increases Stake in Veracyte, Inc. $VCYT

BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) by 392.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 352,621 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 281,079 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Veracyte were worth $14,845,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Veracyte by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,504,088 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $291,945,000 after acquiring an additional 403,737 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its position in Veracyte by 16.6% in the third quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 7,370,467 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $253,028,000 after acquiring an additional 1,048,692 shares during the period. ARK Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Veracyte by 17.5% during the third quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 4,465,775 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $153,310,000 after acquiring an additional 665,686 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Veracyte by 0.4% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,169,700 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $85,677,000 after acquiring an additional 11,461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Veracyte by 3.2% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,118,166 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $107,042,000 after purchasing an additional 95,664 shares during the period.

Veracyte Stock Down 2.4%

Veracyte stock opened at $48.73 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $37.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.08. Veracyte, Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.61 and a 52-week high of $50.71. The firm has a market cap of $3.89 billion, a PE ratio of 44.71 and a beta of 1.98.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.18. Veracyte had a return on equity of 9.07% and a net margin of 16.25%.The business had revenue of $139.07 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $130.36 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.31 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 21.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Veracyte, Inc. will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Veracyte

In other news, CAO Jonathan Wygant sold 24,000 shares of Veracyte stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.40, for a total transaction of $1,089,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 45,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,062,703.60. The trade was a 34.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Annie Mcguire sold 10,204 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.02, for a total transaction of $398,160.08. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 143,708 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,607,486.16. The trade was a 6.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 202,967 shares of company stock worth $9,881,831 over the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Veracyte

Here are the key news stories impacting Veracyte this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Veracyte has stayed sharply higher since its latest earnings report, suggesting investors are still encouraged by the company’s recent beat on both earnings and revenue and its improved growth outlook. Why Is Veracyte (VCYT) Up 18.2% Since Last Earnings Report?
• Positive Sentiment: The company also highlighted ASCO findings from its OPTIMA and ENZAMET Phase III trials in breast and prostate cancer, which could support Veracyte’s precision-diagnostics growth story. Veracyte, Inc. (VCYT) Discusses ASCO Findings From OPTIMA and ENZAMET Phase III Trials in Breast and Prostate Cancer – Slideshow

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on VCYT shares. Wolfe Research started coverage on Veracyte in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on shares of Veracyte from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Veracyte from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Veracyte from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of Veracyte from $48.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.57.

Veracyte Profile

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.