Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $36.59, but opened at $39.70. Veracyte shares last traded at $39.44, with a volume of 388,041 shares traded.

The biotechnology company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $115.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.81 million. Veracyte had a positive return on equity of 1.52% and a negative net margin of 13.52%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.03) earnings per share.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VCYT has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group raised their price target on Veracyte from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Veracyte from $21.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Veracyte from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Guggenheim assumed coverage on Veracyte in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Leerink Partners increased their target price on Veracyte from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $39.00.

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In other news, insider John Leite sold 5,479 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.78, for a total transaction of $163,164.62. Following the sale, the insider now owns 76,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,268,461.72. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider John Leite sold 5,479 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.78, for a total transaction of $163,164.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,268,461.72. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Evan/ Fa Jones sold 5,173 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.23, for a total value of $182,244.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 34,343 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,209,903.89. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 31,109 shares of company stock valued at $1,004,125 over the last 90 days. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Veracyte by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,677 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $91,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Veracyte by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 16,462 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Veracyte by 21.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,778 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its holdings in Veracyte by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 8,198 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $182,000 after purchasing an additional 530 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in Veracyte by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 20,806 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $451,000 after purchasing an additional 733 shares during the last quarter.

Veracyte Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -49.79 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a fifty day moving average of $33.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.86.

About Veracyte

Veracyte, Inc operates as a diagnostics company in the United States and internationally. The company offers Afirma Genomic Sequencing Classifier for cancerous thyroid nodules; Decipher Prostate Biopsy and Radical Prostatectomy for prostate cancer diagnosis; Prosigna Breast Cancer Assay for breast cancer diagnosis; Percepta Nasal Swab Test for lung cancer diagnosis; and Envisia Genomic Classifier for diagnosing interstitial lung disease, including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.