Rebecca Chambers Sells 3,561 Shares of Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Stock

Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 3,561 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.73, for a total transaction of $177,088.53. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 173,280 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,617,214.40. This represents a 2.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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.

Veracyte Trading Down 2.4%

VCYT stock opened at $48.73 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.71 and a beta of 1.98. Veracyte, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.61 and a 52 week high of $50.71. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $37.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.08.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $139.07 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $130.36 million. Veracyte had a net margin of 16.25% and a return on equity of 9.07%. The firm’s revenue was up 21.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.31 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Veracyte, Inc. will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Stories Impacting Veracyte

Here are the key news stories impacting Veracyte this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Veracyte has stayed sharply higher since its latest earnings report, suggesting investors are still encouraged by the company’s recent beat on both earnings and revenue and its improved growth outlook. Why Is Veracyte (VCYT) Up 18.2% Since Last Earnings Report?
• Positive Sentiment: The company also highlighted ASCO findings from its OPTIMA and ENZAMET Phase III trials in breast and prostate cancer, which could support Veracyte’s precision-diagnostics growth story. Veracyte, Inc. (VCYT) Discusses ASCO Findings From OPTIMA and ENZAMET Phase III Trials in Breast and Prostate Cancer – Slideshow

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VCYT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on shares of Veracyte from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Tuesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of Veracyte from $48.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Veracyte from $48.00 to $37.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Veracyte from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Veracyte currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.57.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Veracyte

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 18,100 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $762,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 1.8% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 23,158 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $795,000 after buying an additional 419 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 44,264 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,862,000 after buying an additional 552 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 0.8% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 71,095 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,922,000 after buying an additional 566 shares during the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 7,894 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $332,000 after buying an additional 576 shares during the last quarter.

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.