BNP Paribas Financial Markets Sells 55,684 Shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets lowered its position in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) by 56.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 42,738 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 55,684 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned about 0.06% of Veracyte worth $1,692,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in Veracyte by 49.7% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 714 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Veracyte by 57.4% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,774 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 647 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake in Veracyte by 34.1% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,909 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Veracyte in the 4th quarter worth about $91,000. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Veracyte by 810.2% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,421 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 2,155 shares during the last quarter.

Veracyte Stock Up 2.5%

NASDAQ VCYT opened at $29.20 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.96. Veracyte, Inc. has a 12-month low of $19.73 and a 12-month high of $47.32. The firm has a market cap of $2.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -194.67 and a beta of 2.14.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The biotechnology company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.07. Veracyte had a negative net margin of 2.18% and a positive return on equity of 3.02%. The business had revenue of $118.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $110.73 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.39) earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Veracyte, Inc. will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VCYT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on Veracyte from $49.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $45.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim cut their target price on shares of Veracyte from $45.00 to $37.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Veracyte from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on shares of Veracyte from $51.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.90.

Veracyte Company Profile

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.