Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) Short Interest Down 21.8% in July

Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,720,000 shares, a decline of 21.8% from the June 30th total of 3,480,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 367,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.4 days.

Vericel Price Performance

NASDAQ VCEL traded down $1.22 on Monday, hitting $51.10. 111,168 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 462,836. The business’s fifty day moving average is $47.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.55. Vericel has a 12 month low of $30.18 and a 12 month high of $54.08.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.08) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $51.28 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.07 million. Vericel had a return on equity of 0.21% and a net margin of 0.22%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.16) earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Vericel will post 0.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on VCEL shares. HC Wainwright upped their target price on Vericel from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. BTIG Research reduced their target price on Vericel from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 15th. StockNews.com raised Vericel from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Vericel from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on Vericel in a report on Thursday, June 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Vericel has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vericel news, insider Sean C. Flynn sold 1,474 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.84, for a total transaction of $67,568.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,324.08. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Vericel news, insider Sean C. Flynn sold 1,474 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.84, for a total transaction of $67,568.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,324.08. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Sean C. Flynn sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.18, for a total value of $782,700.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,891.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 63,791 shares of company stock valued at $3,101,269. Corporate insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vericel

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Vericel by 9.7% during the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,484 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $114,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Vericel by 86.1% during the first quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 482 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its position in shares of Vericel by 0.4% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 89,500 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,656,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of Vericel by 319.0% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 662 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI purchased a new stake in shares of Vericel during the first quarter worth $27,000.

Vericel Company Profile

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.