Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $41.70.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. SVB Leerink began coverage on shares of Vericel in a research note on Monday, October 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $42.00 price target on the stock. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $44.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research report on Thursday, September 21st. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Vericel in a report on Thursday, October 5th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. BTIG Research raised shares of Vericel from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $39.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 8th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Vericel in a research report on Monday, October 16th.

Vericel Trading Down 8.1 %

Shares of VCEL stock opened at $32.43 on Friday. Vericel has a twelve month low of $17.39 and a twelve month high of $39.90. The stock has a market cap of $1.54 billion, a P/E ratio of -111.83 and a beta of 1.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $34.18 and a 200 day moving average of $34.25.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 8th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.08) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by $0.05. Vericel had a negative net margin of 7.39% and a negative return on equity of 6.90%. The firm had revenue of $45.58 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.14 million. On average, research analysts predict that Vericel will post -0.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vericel

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in Vericel by 2.7% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 7,632,598 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $286,757,000 after purchasing an additional 201,157 shares in the last quarter. Brown Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vericel by 1.6% during the first quarter. Brown Capital Management LLC now owns 7,042,113 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $206,475,000 after buying an additional 110,472 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Vericel by 15.6% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,400,735 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $85,631,000 after purchasing an additional 458,219 shares during the last quarter. RTW Investments LP boosted its holdings in shares of Vericel by 6.2% in the first quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 3,291,873 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $96,518,000 after acquiring an additional 191,969 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Vericel by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,234,095 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $75,031,000 after buying an additional 88,923 shares in the last quarter.

Vericel Company 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 the United States. 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; and Epicel, a permanent skin replacement humanitarian use device for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients with deep-dermal or full-thickness burns.