Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on VCYT. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Veracyte from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Veracyte in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on Veracyte from $44.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Veracyte from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Veracyte from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Veracyte presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.00.

Veracyte Price Performance

NASDAQ VCYT opened at $42.11 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $42.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $37.20. Veracyte has a 1 year low of $18.61 and a 1 year high of $47.32. The firm has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -280.73 and a beta of 1.71.

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In other news, CAO Jonathan Wygant sold 956 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.36, for a total value of $41,452.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 40,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,746,107.20. This trade represents a 2.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider John Leite sold 1,050 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.25, for a total value of $45,412.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 73,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,192,282.50. The trade was a 1.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 24,565 shares of company stock worth $1,031,406 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Veracyte

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Veracyte by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,211,612 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $325,180,000 after acquiring an additional 463,098 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership increased its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 31.4% in the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 6,599,264 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $261,331,000 after purchasing an additional 1,576,432 shares during the period. ArrowMark Colorado Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. ArrowMark Colorado Holdings LLC now owns 3,080,027 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $121,969,000 after buying an additional 97,824 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Veracyte by 0.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,916,515 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $99,278,000 after buying an additional 7,920 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Veracyte by 1.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,844,713 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $62,806,000 after buying an additional 17,921 shares during the period.

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.