US Bancorp DE Lowers Stake in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

US Bancorp DE cut its stake in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) by 37.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,069 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 1,838 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in Vericel were worth $130,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VCEL. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Vericel by 4,126.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 634 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 619 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vericel by 319.0% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 662 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 504 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Vericel by 22.2% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,773 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vericel by 9.7% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,484 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its position in Vericel by 178.7% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,584 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $134,000 after purchasing an additional 1,657 shares during the period.

Vericel Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VCEL opened at $52.48 on Friday. Vericel Co. has a 1 year low of $32.31 and a 1 year high of $57.81. The company’s 50-day moving average is $44.77 and its 200 day moving average is $46.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 886.31 and a beta of 1.66.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.05) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $57.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.32 million. Vericel had a return on equity of 1.48% and a net margin of 1.56%. Research analysts anticipate that Vericel Co. will post 0.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on VCEL. Canaccord Genuity Group started coverage on Vericel in a report on Friday, August 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price objective on the stock. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Stephens increased their price objective on Vericel from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Canaccord Genuity Group began coverage on shares of Vericel in a research note on Friday, August 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $57.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Vericel from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vericel currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 17,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.38, for a total value of $724,150.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 220,937 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,142,373.06. This represents a 7.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Steven C. Gilman sold 5,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.35, for a total transaction of $235,361.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $443,850. The trade was a 34.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,166 shares of company stock worth $1,200,764 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Vericel Profile

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.