Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) Hits New 12-Month High After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $54.49 and last traded at $55.2960, with a volume of 170,887 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $45.48.

The biotechnology company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.21. Vericel had a net margin of 7.91% and a return on equity of 6.91%. The company had revenue of $85.37 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $77.95 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.10 EPS. Vericel’s revenue was up 26.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VCEL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Vericel from $58.00 to $52.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Vericel in a report on Thursday, October 29th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Vericel from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vericel presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.20.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VCEL. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vericel by 293.0% in the 2nd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 782 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 583 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vericel during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Allworth Financial LP bought a new position in shares of Vericel in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $60,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vericel in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $72,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vericel by 17.7% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,886 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the period.

Vericel Stock Up 20.6%

The company has a market capitalization of $2.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 116.52 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a 50-day moving average of $40.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.73.

About Vericel

Vericel Corporation is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and marketing advanced cell therapies and regenerative medicine products. The company serves orthopedic and burn-care markets, with an emphasis on treatments that use a patient’s own cells or biologic materials to support tissue repair and healing.

Vericel’s primary orthopedic product is MACI, an autologous cultured chondrocyte implant used to repair symptomatic cartilage defects of the knee in adults.