Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Friday.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $37.00 price objective (down from $38.00) on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Veracyte in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Guggenheim began coverage on Veracyte in a report on Thursday, October 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $40.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley increased 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. Finally, Leerink Partners boosted their target price on Veracyte from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $41.13.

Veracyte Trading Down 1.3 %

NASDAQ:VCYT traded down $0.52 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $40.58. The company had a trading volume of 2,571,951 shares, compared to its average volume of 924,805. Veracyte has a 12-month low of $18.61 and a 12-month high of $46.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -270.53 and a beta of 1.71. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.91.

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

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In other Veracyte news, CAO Jonathan Wygant sold 5,032 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.89, for a total transaction of $215,822.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 42,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,814,804.57. This trade represents a 10.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider John Leite sold 1,050 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.25, for a total value of $45,412.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 73,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,192,282.50. The trade was a 1.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 24,038 shares of company stock worth $1,008,297. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veracyte

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Veracyte in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Castleview Partners LLC purchased a new position in Veracyte in the third quarter worth $87,000. Values First Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Veracyte in the third quarter valued at $91,000. KBC Group NV boosted 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 purchasing an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Veracyte by 21.7% during the 3rd 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 during the period.

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.