Canaccord Genuity Group Cuts Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Price Target to $40.00

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) had its price objective trimmed by Canaccord Genuity Group from $43.00 to $40.00 in a research report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a hold rating on the biotechnology company’s stock.

VCYT has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Veracyte in a report on Monday, April 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $45.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Veracyte from $48.00 to $37.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Veracyte from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, December 27th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $48.00 price target on shares of Veracyte in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Veracyte in a report on Friday, March 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.83.

Veracyte Stock Performance

Shares of VCYT opened at $33.71 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $2.68 billion, a PE ratio of 40.61 and a beta of 1.96. Veracyte has a fifty-two week low of $22.61 and a fifty-two week high of $50.71. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.22.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The biotechnology company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $140.64 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $135.79 million. Veracyte had a net margin of 12.83% and a return on equity of 8.05%. The business’s revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.06 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Veracyte will post 1.21 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Marc Stapley sold 45,523 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.97, for a total transaction of $1,637,462.31. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 357,554 shares in the company, valued at $12,861,217.38. This represents a 11.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Annie Mcguire sold 6,658 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.55, for a total transaction of $236,691.90. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 94,706 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,366,798.30. The trade was a 6.57% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 75,782 shares of company stock worth $2,722,097. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veracyte

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 34.8% in the third quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 409,601 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $14,062,000 after purchasing an additional 105,721 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 667.9% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 435,761 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $14,960,000 after purchasing an additional 379,014 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 16.6% in the third quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 7,370,467 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $253,028,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048,692 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 23.6% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,324,965 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $45,486,000 after purchasing an additional 253,033 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Iron Triangle Partners LP purchased a new stake in Veracyte in the third quarter worth approximately $16,650,000.

About Veracyte

Veracyte, Inc is a genomic diagnostics company focused on improving diagnostic accuracy and patient care through advanced molecular testing. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in South San Francisco, California, the company develops and commercializes minimally invasive genomic tests that aid in the diagnosis of thyroid, lung and other diseases. Veracyte’s proprietary platform analyzes gene expression patterns in clinical samples to help physicians make more informed treatment decisions, reducing unnecessary surgeries and improving patient outcomes.

The company’s flagship product, the Afirma Genomic Sequencing Classifier, is designed to assess thyroid nodules with indeterminate cytology, helping clinicians distinguish benign from suspicious nodules.