Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) Stock Price Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL)’s share price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $39.08 and traded as high as $40.40. Vericel shares last traded at $40.15, with a volume of 479,211 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on VCEL shares. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $60.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Vericel from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Vericel from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 18th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Vericel from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vericel currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $58.40.

Vericel Stock Up 1.8%

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.08. The stock has a market cap of $2.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 85.43 and a beta of 1.02.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.07. Vericel had a return on equity of 6.91% and a net margin of 7.91%.The company had revenue of $77.46 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.70 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.01) EPS. The business’s revenue was up 22.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Vericel Corporation will post 0.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vericel

In related news, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.90, for a total transaction of $220,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 1,078 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,714.20. This represents a 80.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vericel

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Vericel by 17.7% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,886 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $84,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in Vericel by 2.2% during the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 23,079 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,027,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vericel by 293.0% in the second quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 782 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 583 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in Vericel by 20.4% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,571 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $165,000 after acquiring an additional 774 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vericel during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000.

Vericel Company Profile

Vericel Corporation is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and marketing advanced cell therapies and specialty biologic products for the treatment of severe medical conditions. The company’s products are designed to support tissue repair and regeneration, with an emphasis on orthopedic and burn-care applications.

Vericel’s primary product is MACI, an autologous cellularized scaffold used to repair full-thickness cartilage defects in the knee. The therapy is made from a patient’s own cartilage cells, which are expanded and seeded onto a collagen membrane before implantation.