KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Makes New $610,000 Investment in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 15,400 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $610,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VCYT. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 116.3% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 833,754 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $33,017,000 after purchasing an additional 448,251 shares during the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC purchased a new position in shares of Veracyte during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $9,498,000. Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in shares of Veracyte by 276.4% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 301,652 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $10,268,000 after buying an additional 221,504 shares in the last quarter. Castleark Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Veracyte in the third quarter worth $6,010,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Veracyte by 33.7% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 360,106 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $14,260,000 after acquiring an additional 90,863 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on VCYT shares. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. StockNews.com lowered Veracyte from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group increased their target price on Veracyte from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $37.00 price target (down from $38.00) on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Craig Hallum initiated coverage on shares of Veracyte in a report on Thursday, March 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $45.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Veracyte currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.40.

Veracyte Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VCYT opened at $30.13 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.35 billion, a PE ratio of -200.87 and a beta of 1.80. Veracyte, Inc. has a 1-year low of $18.61 and a 1-year high of $47.32. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $36.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $37.72.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 24th. The biotechnology company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $118.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $110.73 million. Veracyte had a negative net margin of 2.18% and a positive return on equity of 3.02%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.39) EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Veracyte, Inc. will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.