PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Has $1.01 Million Stock Holdings in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) by 9.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 25,439 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,115 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Veracyte were worth $1,007,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VCYT. KBC Group NV lifted its position in Veracyte by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,677 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Veracyte during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $290,000. RiverPark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Veracyte during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $166,000. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Veracyte during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $252,000. Finally, Phocas Financial Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of Veracyte during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,788,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VCYT has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $37.00 price target (down previously from $38.00) on shares of Veracyte in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Veracyte from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $51.00 price objective on shares of Veracyte in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Veracyte from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Veracyte from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Veracyte

In related news, Director Karin Eastham sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.30, for a total value of $403,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 18,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $745,429.10. This represents a 35.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Veracyte Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VCYT opened at $31.51 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $37.70. Veracyte, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $18.61 and a fifty-two week high of $47.32. The firm has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a P/E ratio of -210.07 and a beta of 1.80.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The biotechnology company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.07. Veracyte had a negative net margin of 2.18% and a positive return on equity of 3.02%. The business had revenue of $118.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $110.73 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.39) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Veracyte, Inc. will post 0.68 EPS for the current year.

Veracyte Company Profile

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.