Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) shares gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $58.67, but opened at $55.09. Vericel shares last traded at $54.98, with a volume of 255,029 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. StockNews.com upgraded Vericel from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Vericel from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. BTIG Research boosted their price target on Vericel from $56.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.14.

Vericel Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $2.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 939.32 and a beta of 1.72. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $56.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $49.89.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by $0.03. Vericel had a return on equity of 1.48% and a net margin of 1.56%. The company had revenue of $57.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.32 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Vericel Co. will post 0.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vericel news, Director Paul K. Wotton sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.72, for a total value of $152,672.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 27,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,609,045.44. This trade represents a 8.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Robert L. Md Zerbe sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $150,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 26,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,595,700. This represents a 8.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,100 shares of company stock worth $889,872 in the last ninety days. 7.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vericel

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Vericel by 4,126.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 634 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 619 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Vericel by 48.1% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,247 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 405 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Vericel by 22.2% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,773 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 322 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vericel in the third quarter valued at about $92,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Vericel in the third quarter valued at about $146,000.

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.