Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Lowers Position in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund cut its position in shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 26,229 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 3,582 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Vericel were worth $1,440,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Vericel by 4,126.7% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 634 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 619 shares in the last quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI bought a new stake in shares of Vericel during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Vericel by 48.1% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,247 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Vericel by 22.2% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,773 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vericel during the third quarter valued at approximately $92,000.

Vericel Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VCEL opened at $51.29 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 854.98 and a beta of 1.72. Vericel Co. has a 1 year low of $39.12 and a 1 year high of $63.00. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $57.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $51.83.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VCEL has been the topic of several analyst reports. BTIG Research boosted their target price on Vericel from $56.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Vericel from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a report on Friday. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $63.14.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jonathan Mark Hopper sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.72, for a total transaction of $587,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 58,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,427,545.12. This represents a 14.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert L. Md Zerbe sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.50, for a total value of $156,250.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 26,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,662,187.50. This trade represents a 8.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,100 shares of company stock valued at $1,206,072 over the last ninety days. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vericel 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 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.