Vanguard Group Inc. Purchases 1,636 Shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) by 0.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,485,532 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 1,636 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Vericel worth $191,391,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vericel in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,126,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Vericel by 66.3% in the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,258,416 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $69,100,000 after acquiring an additional 501,736 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Vericel by 214.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 587,857 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $24,837,000 after purchasing an additional 400,667 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Vericel by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,454,139 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $79,847,000 after purchasing an additional 162,419 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its position in Vericel by 145.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 111,527 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,712,000 after purchasing an additional 66,082 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Vericel

In related news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 26,592 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.78, for a total transaction of $1,217,381.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 259,997 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,902,662.66. This represents a 9.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 1,092 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $67,693.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,206 shares in the company, valued at approximately $74,759.94. The trade was a 47.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,092 shares of company stock worth $1,683,582 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Vericel from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 8th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a report on Friday, February 28th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $61.00 target price (down previously from $67.00) on shares of Vericel in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on shares of Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vericel has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.29.

Vericel Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VCEL opened at $41.92 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $51.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.73. The company has a market capitalization of $2.10 billion, a PE ratio of 698.78 and a beta of 1.61. Vericel Co. has a 52 week low of $39.12 and a 52 week high of $63.00.

About Vericel

Vericel Corporation, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the research, development, manufacture, and distribution of cellular therapies for sports medicine and severe burn care markets in North America. The company markets autologous cell therapy products comprising MACI, an autologous cultured chondrocytes on porcine collagen membrane for the repair of symptomatic, and single or multiple full-thickness cartilage defects of the knee; Epicel, a permanent skin replacement humanitarian use device for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients with deep-dermal or full-thickness burns; and NexoBrid, a biological orphan product for eschar removal in adults with deep partial-thickness and/or full-thickness thermal burns.