Vericel Corporation

VCEL

Biotechnology · Healthcare

Exchange

NASDAQ

Winston Score

Winston is curious

A decent business — some strong pillars, some weaker.

Data as of Aug 23, 2026 · filings through Jun 30, 2026

How the score breaks down

Quality

Mixed

Growth

Exceptional

Cash Flow

Exceptional

Stability

Exceptional

Valuation

Good

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Winston Score History

The full picture

Vericel Corporation is a biotech company that makes specialized cell therapy products for people with serious injuries. Its two main products are MACI, a treatment that uses a patient's own cartilage cells to repair knee damage, and Epicel, a skin graft product for patients with severe burns. Both products are sold to hospitals and surgeons in the United States.

Vericel earns revenue by selling these therapies directly to healthcare providers, with each treatment custom-made from the individual patient's own cells. The company operates exclusively in the U.S. market and generates strong gross margins above 74%, reflecting the premium pricing that comes with having few direct competitors in these niche areas. Its biggest growth driver is expanding the use of MACI among orthopedic surgeons, but the company faces risk from its small product portfolio — if either product runs into safety concerns or reimbursement issues, it could significantly hurt revenue.

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Growth Profile

For growth stock investors

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

+22.5% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Steady revenue growth

EPS Growth

+463.6% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

EPS growth accelerating

Insider Activity

1.2%ownership

→ Flat

Insider ownership roughly steady over the past year

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

$227M cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

↑ Burn rate improving

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Growth + cash flow

Vericel Corporation is a rare growth stock that's already generating positive cash flow while growing at 22%. The Winston Score doesn't fully credit this transition from "burner" to "earner."

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

Every number that matters to educated investors.

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Quality

Profit per sale

Gross Margin

72.8%

Premium pricing power — 72.8% gross margin

Profit after running costs

Operating Margin

0.6%

Thin — 0.6% operating margin

Return on the money invested

ROCE

3.9%

Weak — 3.9% return on capital

ROIC between 0% and 5%. They earn a few cents back per dollar invested in the business.

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Growth

Sales growth

Sales YoY

+23.0%

Fast-growing sales (+23.0% YoY)

Profit growth

EPS YoY

+241.4%

Earnings growing fast (+241.4% YoY)

Earnings growing 25%+ a year. The compounder zone.

How steady the profit is

EPS Consistency

7/8 quarters

Every recent quarter grew earnings vs last year

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Cash Flow

Profit that turns into cash

Cash Conversion

288%

Turns 288% of profit into real cash

Spare cash per sale

FCF Margin

16.2%

Converts sales into free cash efficiently (16.2%)

FCF margin between 10% and 20%. Every $100 in sales becomes $10 to $20 in real cash.

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Stability

What it owes vs what it owns

Debt / Equity

0.25

Conservative — low debt load (0.25)

Covers its interest

Interest Cover

28.49x

Comfortably covers interest (28.5x)

Interest coverage above 8. Profits cover interest many times over.

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Valuation

Price vs profit

P/E Ratio (TTM)

87.7x

no trend

Expensive — P/E 87.7

P/E over 35. The market is pricing in heavy, sustained growth.

Cheaper or dearer next year

P/E vs Forward

+53.5

GROWING

Earnings expected to grow meaningfully — cheaper on forward P/E (87.7 → 34.2)

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Dividends

Not applicable for this business.

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