Short Interest in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) Increases By 26.4%

Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,170,000 shares, an increase of 26.4% from the March 15th total of 3,300,000 shares. Approximately 5.5% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 972,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.3 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on VCYT shares. Craig Hallum started coverage on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $45.00 price objective on the stock. Guggenheim reduced their price target on Veracyte from $45.00 to $37.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $51.00 target price on shares of Veracyte in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Veracyte in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Veracyte from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $42.60.

Veracyte Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of VCYT opened at $31.14 on Monday. Veracyte has a fifty-two week low of $19.09 and a fifty-two week high of $47.32. The company’s fifty day moving average is $33.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.41. The firm has a market cap of $2.43 billion, a PE ratio of -207.60 and a beta of 2.03.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The biotechnology company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $118.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $110.73 million. Veracyte had a positive return on equity of 3.02% and a negative net margin of 2.18%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.39) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Veracyte will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in Veracyte by 49.7% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 714 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Veracyte by 1,267.6% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 930 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 862 shares during the period. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new stake in Veracyte in the 4th quarter valued at $64,000. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Veracyte by 57.4% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,774 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 647 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Veracyte by 34.1% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,909 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares in the last quarter.

About Veracyte

Veracyte, Inc engages in the research, development and commercialization of diagnostic products. The firm’s portfolio includes Afirma, Percepta, and Envisia. It intends to treat thyroid cancer, improve lung cancer screening, and clarify the diagnosis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The company was founded by Bonnie H.