AQR Capital Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

AQR Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) by 33.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,701 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 5,367 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Vericel were worth $491,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Congress Asset Management Co. MA raised its holdings in Vericel by 509.1% in the first quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 836,481 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $43,514,000 after acquiring an additional 699,147 shares in the last quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vericel during the 1st quarter worth $12,782,000. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vericel by 34.9% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 840,787 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $38,575,000 after purchasing an additional 217,437 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vericel by 51.5% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 611,146 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $28,039,000 after purchasing an additional 207,714 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneva Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Vericel by 43.6% in the first quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 679,165 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $35,330,000 after buying an additional 206,202 shares during the last quarter.

Vericel Price Performance

VCEL stock opened at $42.09 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $2.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4,209.00 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $45.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.97. Vericel Co. has a 12 month low of $31.82 and a 12 month high of $54.10.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.10) EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10). Vericel had a net margin of 0.37% and a return on equity of 0.35%. The business had revenue of $52.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $52.59 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.11) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 14.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Vericel Co. will post 0.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 17,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.40, for a total value of $899,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 220,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,356,161.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 17,500 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.40, for a total value of $899,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,356,161.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Steven C. Gilman sold 5,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.35, for a total transaction of $235,361.55. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $443,850. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on VCEL shares. Canaccord Genuity Group started coverage on Vericel in a research report on Friday, August 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com downgraded Vericel from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group initiated coverage on shares of Vericel in a report on Friday, August 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price objective on the stock. HC Wainwright upped their target price on shares of Vericel from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, BTIG Research cut their price target on shares of Vericel from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.75.

About Vericel

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.