Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday.

VCYT has been the topic of a number of other research reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Veracyte from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Veracyte from $44.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Veracyte from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Veracyte from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Veracyte in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Veracyte currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.00.

Veracyte Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of VCYT opened at $40.38 on Monday. Veracyte has a 12-month low of $18.61 and a 12-month high of $47.32. The business’s 50 day moving average is $42.42 and its 200 day moving average is $36.55. The company has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a PE ratio of -269.20 and a beta of 1.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jonathan Wygant sold 956 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.36, for a total transaction of $41,452.16. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 40,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,746,107.20. This represents a 2.32 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Karin Eastham sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.30, for a total value of $403,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,497 shares in the company, valued at $745,429.10. This represents 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 in the last three months. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in shares of Veracyte by 49.7% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 714 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Veracyte by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 22,276 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $882,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Veracyte by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 16,630 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $659,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 13.7% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,677 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 34.1% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,909 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the last quarter.

Veracyte Company Profile

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.