Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) Receives $41.13 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $41.13.

A number of brokerages recently commented on VCYT. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Veracyte in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Veracyte from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Veracyte from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $37.00 target price (down previously from $38.00) on shares of Veracyte in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Veracyte from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th.

Insider Activity at Veracyte

In other Veracyte news, insider John Leite sold 1,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.25, for a total value of $45,412.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 73,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,192,282.50. This trade represents a 1.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Jonathan Wygant sold 956 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.36, for a total value of $41,452.16. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 40,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,746,107.20. The trade was a 2.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,038 shares of company stock worth $605,297 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veracyte

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VCYT. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Veracyte by 13.7% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,677 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 16,462 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Veracyte by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,778 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 20,806 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $451,000 after buying an additional 733 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in Veracyte by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 21,823 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $473,000 after buying an additional 1,173 shares in the last quarter.

Veracyte Trading Down 1.0 %

NASDAQ:VCYT opened at $39.60 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.07 billion, a P/E ratio of -264.00 and a beta of 1.69. Veracyte has a 12 month low of $18.61 and a 12 month high of $46.00. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $39.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.31.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $115.86 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.81 million. Veracyte had a positive return on equity of 3.02% and a negative net margin of 2.18%. The firm’s revenue was up 28.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.03) EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Veracyte will post 0.38 EPS for the current year.

About Veracyte

Veracyte, Inc engages in the research, development and commercialization of diagnostic products. The firm’s portfolio includes Afirma, Percepta, and Envisia. It intends to treat thyroid cancer, improve lung cancer screening, and clarify the diagnosis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The company was founded by Bonnie H.