Scholtz & Company LLC Invests $1.36 Million in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

Scholtz & Company LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 29,573 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,357,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MCF Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Vericel by 86.1% during the 1st quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 482 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Vericel by 319.0% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 662 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Vericel by 9.7% in the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,484 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $114,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its position in Vericel by 178.7% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,584 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $134,000 after acquiring an additional 1,657 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RiverPark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Vericel in the first quarter valued at approximately $147,000.

Vericel Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of VCEL stock opened at $44.27 on Friday. Vericel Co. has a 1 year low of $30.18 and a 1 year high of $54.10. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $48.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.41.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.10). The company had revenue of $52.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $52.59 million. Vericel had a net margin of 0.37% and a return on equity of 0.35%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.11) EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Vericel Co. will post 0.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VCEL has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vericel from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group initiated coverage on Vericel in a research report on Friday, August 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price target for the company. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on Vericel from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Stephens raised their price objective on Vericel from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on Vericel from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $55.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vericel

In other news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 17,500 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.40, for a total transaction of $899,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,356,161.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Sean C. Flynn sold 6,772 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.02, for a total value of $304,875.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,924.74. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 17,500 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.40, for a total value of $899,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 220,937 shares in the company, valued at $11,356,161.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 46,291 shares of company stock valued at $2,329,169 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

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.