Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Price Target Increased to $26.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) had its price objective lifted by Morgan Stanley from $21.00 to $26.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an underweight rating on the biotechnology company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Veracyte from $32.00 to $28.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 15th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of Veracyte from $27.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $29.75.

Veracyte Trading Up 3.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ VCYT traded up $1.01 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $30.93. The stock had a trading volume of 150,830 shares, compared to its average volume of 755,045. Veracyte has a 52-week low of $18.61 and a 52-week high of $31.01. The firm has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -31.83 and a beta of 1.65. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $22.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.37.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.10. The business had revenue of $114.43 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $100.27 million. Veracyte had a positive return on equity of 1.52% and a negative net margin of 13.52%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.12) EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Veracyte will post -0.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In other news, Director Muna Bhanji sold 3,870 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.32, for a total transaction of $78,638.40. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $469,493.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Karin Eastham sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.00, for a total value of $187,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 33,228 shares in the company, valued at $830,700. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Muna Bhanji sold 3,870 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.32, for a total transaction of $78,638.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $469,493.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,686 shares of company stock valued at $527,807 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veracyte

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VCYT. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Veracyte by 3.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,384,871 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $163,649,000 after buying an additional 266,660 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Veracyte by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,372,703 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $92,787,000 after purchasing an additional 161,073 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. grew its stake in shares of Veracyte by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 3,347,436 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $74,179,000 after purchasing an additional 242,760 shares during the period. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 3,347,436 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $74,012,000 after purchasing an additional 242,760 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Veracyte by 23.3% in the 1st quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,697,600 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $59,779,000 after purchasing an additional 509,340 shares during the period.

About Veracyte

Veracyte, Inc operates as a diagnostics company in the United States and internationally. The company offers Afirma Genomic Sequencing Classifier for cancerous thyroid nodules; Decipher Prostate Biopsy and Radical Prostatectomy for prostate cancer diagnosis; Prosigna Breast Cancer Assay for breast cancer diagnosis; Percepta Nasal Swab Test for lung cancer diagnosis; and Envisia Genomic Classifier for diagnosing interstitial lung disease, including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.