Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) Receives $41.13 Average PT from Analysts

Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $41.13.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Guggenheim started coverage on Veracyte in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. Leerink Partners raised their target price on Veracyte from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of Veracyte from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on shares of Veracyte from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on Veracyte from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Veracyte

In other news, insider John Leite sold 1,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.25, for a total value of $45,412.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 73,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,192,282.50. This trade represents a 1.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Karin Eastham sold 10,000 shares of Veracyte stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.30, for a total value of $403,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 a total of 24,038 shares of company stock valued at $1,008,297 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Castleview Partners LLC bought a new stake in Veracyte during the 3rd quarter valued at $87,000. Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Veracyte in the 3rd quarter valued at about $91,000. KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,677 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Veracyte in the second quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Veracyte by 21.7% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,778 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares in the last quarter.

Veracyte Trading Down 0.6 %

Veracyte stock opened at $43.81 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.85. The stock has a market cap of $3.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -292.07 and a beta of 1.71. Veracyte has a 12-month low of $18.61 and a 12-month high of $46.00.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.16. Veracyte had a negative net margin of 2.18% and a positive return on equity of 3.02%. The firm had revenue of $115.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.81 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.03) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 28.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Veracyte will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.