Rebecca Chambers Sells 3,652 Shares of Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Stock

Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 3,652 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.10, for a total transaction of $157,401.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 166,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,155,677.50. This trade represents a 2.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible 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 Stock Down 4.8%

Shares of VCYT stock opened at $42.53 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $43.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.16 and a beta of 1.93. Veracyte, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $29.45 and a fifty-two week high of $60.91.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.13. Veracyte had a net margin of 20.37% and a return on equity of 9.26%. The business had revenue of $150.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $144.59 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.44 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Veracyte, Inc. will post 1.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Headlines Impacting Veracyte

Here are the key news stories impacting Veracyte this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Institutional ownership trends remain supportive. Bank of America, Royal Bank of Canada and William Blair increased their positions, while Summit Creek Advisors and Deutsche Bank initiated new stakes. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $54.33, above recent trading levels. Veracyte insider trading and institutional ownership report
• Neutral Sentiment: Veracyte’s most recent reported quarter showed earnings of $0.54 per share versus the $0.41 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 15.5% year over year to $150.32 million. These results provide a fundamental backdrop of continued growth, although they are not new developments in the latest disclosures.
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Annie McGuire sold 3,254 shares for approximately $140,215, CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 3,652 shares for about $157,401, and insider Phillip Febbo sold 13,110 shares valued at roughly $564,386. Each transaction was executed through a 10b5-1 plan to cover taxes, and the sellers retained substantial positions, limiting the signal that management is broadly abandoning the stock. Veracyte executive stock sale filing
• Negative Sentiment: Director Muna Bhanji separately sold 1,864 shares for approximately $80,096, reducing her position by 4.18%. The sale was also pre-arranged, but the cluster of insider transactions may reinforce short-term caution among investors. Muna Bhanji Veracyte stock sale

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Veracyte

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Veracyte in the second quarter valued at approximately $792,058,000. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Veracyte by 5,665.2% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 5,363,282 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $314,986,000 after acquiring an additional 5,270,253 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Veracyte by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,360,913 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $183,594,000 after acquiring an additional 161,239 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Veracyte by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,118,166 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $107,042,000 after purchasing an additional 95,664 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Veracyte by 64.9% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,117,046 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $68,190,000 after purchasing an additional 833,543 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Veracyte from $57.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Veracyte from $47.00 to $44.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Veracyte from $66.00 to $54.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Veracyte from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Veracyte from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $54.33.

Veracyte Company Profile

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.