Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) Shares Purchased by William Blair Investment Management LLC

William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) by 66.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,258,416 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 501,736 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Vericel were worth $69,100,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VCEL. Atria Investments Inc raised its stake in Vericel by 21.6% in the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 7,768 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $328,000 after purchasing an additional 1,378 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Vericel by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 623,627 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $26,348,000 after purchasing an additional 12,481 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Vericel in the 3rd quarter valued at about $92,000. Premier Fund Managers Ltd purchased a new stake in Vericel in the 3rd quarter valued at about $781,000. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC grew its holdings in Vericel by 49.2% in the 3rd quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 115,334 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,873,000 after buying an additional 38,031 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the company. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $61.00 price target (down previously from $67.00) on shares of Vericel in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, BTIG Research boosted their target price on Vericel from $56.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Vericel presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vericel news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 26,592 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.78, for a total value of $1,217,381.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 259,997 shares in the company, valued at $11,902,662.66. This represents a 9.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 3,908 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $242,256.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,206 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,759.94. This represents a 76.42 % 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 90 days. 5.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vericel Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VCEL opened at $47.60 on Tuesday. Vericel Co. has a 1 year low of $39.12 and a 1 year high of $63.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 793.47 and a beta of 1.78. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $55.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.82.

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.