Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Buy” Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Monday morning.

VCYT has been the topic of several other reports. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Veracyte from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Veracyte from $44.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Veracyte in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $37.00 target price (down previously from $38.00) on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Veracyte from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Veracyte presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.00.

Veracyte Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VCYT opened at $41.93 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $42.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $36.30. Veracyte has a 1 year low of $18.61 and a 1 year high of $47.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -279.53 and a beta of 1.71.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.23, for a total value of $302,610.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 114,037 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,929,819.51. This represents a 5.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Karin Eastham sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.30, for a total transaction of $403,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $745,429.10. The trade was a 35.09 % 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 ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VCYT. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Veracyte by 6,108.0% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 8,567 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $339,000 after acquiring an additional 8,429 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new position in shares of Veracyte during the 4th quarter worth $285,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 17,837.8% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 6,637 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $263,000 after purchasing an additional 6,600 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Veracyte during the 4th quarter worth about $433,000. Finally, Swiss National Bank raised its holdings in Veracyte by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 151,100 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $5,984,000 after buying an additional 1,800 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.