88,944 Shares in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) Acquired by Trexquant Investment LP

Trexquant Investment LP bought a new stake in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 88,944 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,884,000. Trexquant Investment LP owned about 0.18% of Vericel as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VCEL. Congress Asset Management Co. raised its holdings in Vericel by 12.6% during 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 buying an additional 162,419 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Vericel by 119.3% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,288,921 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $70,775,000 after acquiring an additional 701,064 shares in the last quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Vericel by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 1,273,964 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $69,953,000 after purchasing an additional 30,180 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Vericel by 66.3% during 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 purchasing an additional 501,736 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Vericel by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,166,115 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $64,046,000 after purchasing an additional 12,062 shares during the period.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Transactions at Vericel

In related news, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 1,092 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $67,693.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,206 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,759.94. This represents a 47.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert L. Md Zerbe sold 2,500 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.50, for a total value of $156,250.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 26,595 shares in the company, valued at $1,662,187.50. The trade was a 8.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 34,092 shares of company stock valued at $1,683,582. 5.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vericel Stock Down 3.6 %

VCEL stock opened at $41.92 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $51.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.69. The company has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a PE ratio of 698.78 and a beta of 1.78. Vericel Co. has a twelve month low of $39.12 and a twelve month high of $63.00.

Vericel 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.