Rice Hall James & Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT – Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 95,586 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,614,000.
Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in Veracyte in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in Veracyte during the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Veracyte by 159.8% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 21.2% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,121 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 289.9% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,201 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 893 shares during the last quarter.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, EVP Annie Mcguire sold 3,176 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.76, for a total transaction of $158,037.76. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 137,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,829,062.40. This trade represents a 2.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider John Leite sold 13,975 shares of Veracyte stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.07, for a total transaction of $699,728.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 132,305 shares in the company, valued at $6,624,511.35. The trade was a 9.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 196,492 shares of company stock valued at $9,680,897 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.
Veracyte Stock Performance
Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $150.32 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $144.59 million. Veracyte had a return on equity of 9.26% and a net margin of 20.37%.The business’s revenue was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.44 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Veracyte, Inc. will post 1.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several research firms recently weighed in on VCYT. Stephens decreased their target price on Veracyte from $68.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price target on shares of Veracyte from $60.00 to $50.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Veracyte from $57.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Veracyte from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of Veracyte from $45.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Veracyte has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $54.33.
Read Our Latest Research Report on VCYT
About Veracyte
Veracyte, Inc is a genomic diagnostics company focused on improving diagnostic accuracy and patient care through advanced molecular testing. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in South San Francisco, California, the company develops and commercializes minimally invasive genomic tests that aid in the diagnosis of thyroid, lung and other diseases. Veracyte’s proprietary platform analyzes gene expression patterns in clinical samples to help physicians make more informed treatment decisions, reducing unnecessary surgeries and improving patient outcomes.
The company’s flagship product, the Afirma Genomic Sequencing Classifier, is designed to assess thyroid nodules with indeterminate cytology, helping clinicians distinguish benign from suspicious nodules.
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