Leerink Partners Boosts Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Price Target to $40.00

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) had its price objective upped by Leerink Partners from $35.00 to $40.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. Leerink Partners currently has an outperform rating on the biotechnology company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on VCYT. Guggenheim initiated coverage on shares of Veracyte in a report on Thursday, October 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Veracyte from $21.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. UBS Group began coverage on Veracyte in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $43.00 target price for the company. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on Veracyte from $31.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Veracyte presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.67.

Veracyte Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VCYT opened at $34.44 on Thursday. Veracyte has a one year low of $18.61 and a one year high of $35.51. The stock has a market cap of $2.63 billion, a PE ratio of -36.64 and a beta of 1.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $32.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.51.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03) by $0.10. The business had revenue of $114.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $100.27 million. Veracyte had a positive return on equity of 1.52% and a negative net margin of 13.52%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.12) EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Veracyte will post 0.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider John Leite sold 5,479 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.78, for a total transaction of $163,164.62. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 76,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,268,461.72. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider John Leite sold 5,479 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.78, for a total transaction of $163,164.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,268,461.72. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jens Holstein sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.00, for a total transaction of $145,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 27,878 shares in the company, valued at $808,462. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 37,141 shares of company stock valued at $1,180,116. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veracyte

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VCYT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,118,211 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $195,822,000 after acquiring an additional 52,699 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Veracyte by 27.3% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,323 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $201,000 after purchasing an additional 1,571 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Veracyte by 117.7% during the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 20,910 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $463,000 after buying an additional 11,303 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 54.4% in the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 22,860 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $507,000 after buying an additional 8,050 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Veracyte by 9.1% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 9,325 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $207,000 after buying an additional 778 shares during the last quarter.

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.