Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Shares Down 6.1% – Time to Sell?

Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) shares dropped 6.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $31.61 and last traded at $31.64. Approximately 697,793 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 14% from the average daily volume of 809,008 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.69.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on VCYT shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Veracyte from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Craig Hallum assumed coverage on shares of Veracyte in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $45.00 price objective on the stock. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Veracyte in a report on Wednesday. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Veracyte in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $37.00 price target (down previously from $38.00) on shares of Veracyte in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.40.

Veracyte Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -207.57 and a beta of 1.80. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $38.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $37.78.

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

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In related news, Director Karin Eastham sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.30, for a total transaction of $403,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,497 shares in the company, valued at approximately $745,429.10. The trade was a 35.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Veracyte

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,211,612 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $325,180,000 after purchasing an additional 463,098 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its holdings in Veracyte by 31.4% during the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 6,599,264 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $261,331,000 after acquiring an additional 1,576,432 shares during the period. ArrowMark Colorado Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Veracyte by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. ArrowMark Colorado Holdings LLC now owns 3,080,027 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $121,969,000 after acquiring an additional 97,824 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Veracyte by 0.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,916,515 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $99,278,000 after acquiring an additional 7,920 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Veracyte by 1.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,844,713 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $62,806,000 after purchasing an additional 17,921 shares in the last quarter.

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.