Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 14,712 Shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) by 32.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,486 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 14,712 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Veracyte were worth $1,038,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VCYT. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Veracyte by 2,331.6% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,386 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,329 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its stake in Veracyte by 168.3% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 951 shares during the period. Castleview Partners LLC bought a new stake in Veracyte during the 3rd quarter valued at about $87,000. Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Veracyte in the 3rd quarter valued at about $91,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in Veracyte in the 2nd quarter worth about $58,000.

Veracyte Price Performance

VCYT opened at $39.59 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.07 billion, a PE ratio of -263.93 and a beta of 1.67. The business’s 50-day moving average is $34.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.25. Veracyte, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.61 and a 1 year high of $41.43.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.16. Veracyte had a negative net margin of 2.18% and a positive return on equity of 3.02%. The firm had revenue of $115.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.81 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.03) EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 28.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Veracyte, Inc. will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In other Veracyte news, Director Evan/ Fa Jones sold 5,173 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.23, for a total transaction of $182,244.79. Following the sale, the director now owns 34,343 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,209,903.89. The trade was a 13.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider John Leite sold 5,479 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.78, for a total transaction of $163,164.62. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,268,461.72. This represents a 6.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on VCYT. Leerink Partners lifted their price target on shares of Veracyte from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group upped their target price on Veracyte from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Veracyte from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Veracyte from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Guggenheim assumed coverage on shares of Veracyte in a report on Thursday, October 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.25.

About Veracyte

Veracyte, Inc operates as a diagnostics company in the United States and internationally. The company offers Afirma Genomic Sequencing Classifier for cancerous thyroid nodules; Decipher Prostate Biopsy and Radical Prostatectomy for prostate cancer diagnosis; Prosigna Breast Cancer Assay for breast cancer diagnosis; Percepta Nasal Swab Test for lung cancer diagnosis; and Envisia Genomic Classifier for diagnosing interstitial lung disease, including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.