Vera Therapeutics, Inc. $VERA Shares Sold by First Light Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• First Light Asset Management LLC sold 85,367 shares of Vera Therapeutics, reducing its ownership by 6.8%, but still holds 1,175,879 shares worth approximately $28.25 million.
• 99.21% of Vera Therapeutics' stock is currently owned by institutional investors, with multiple institutions adjusting their holdings during the first quarter.
• Vera Therapeutics reported a quarterly loss of ($1.20) EPS, missing the consensus estimate, and has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target of $63.00.

First Light Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA - Free Report) by 6.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,175,879 shares of the company's stock after selling 85,367 shares during the period. Vera Therapeutics comprises 3.2% of First Light Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. First Light Asset Management LLC owned 1.84% of Vera Therapeutics worth $28,245,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VERA. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in Vera Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $264,000. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL lifted its position in Vera Therapeutics by 30.1% during the fourth quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 31,843 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,347,000 after buying an additional 7,365 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 26.0% during the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 128,380 shares of the company's stock worth $5,429,000 after purchasing an additional 26,519 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 455,007 shares of the company's stock worth $19,242,000 after purchasing an additional 89,707 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC lifted its position in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 66.4% during the fourth quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 38,550 shares of the company's stock worth $1,630,000 after purchasing an additional 15,386 shares in the last quarter. 99.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on VERA. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and set a $85.00 target price (up from $75.00) on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a "peer perform" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a report on Monday, August 4th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Vera Therapeutics from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $63.00.

Insider Activity at Vera Therapeutics

In other news, Director Patrick G. Enright purchased 209,393 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $20.87 per share, for a total transaction of $4,370,031.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,569,522 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $74,495,924.14. The trade was a 6.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 16.30% of the company's stock.

Vera Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of Vera Therapeutics stock traded up $2.29 during trading on Friday, hitting $24.19. 2,747,955 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,696,433. The stock's fifty day moving average is $22.19 and its 200 day moving average is $23.35. The stock has a market cap of $1.54 billion, a PE ratio of -6.76 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 17.03 and a current ratio of 17.03. Vera Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.53 and a 12 month high of $51.61.

Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported ($1.20) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.82) by ($0.38). During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.62) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vera Therapeutics, Inc. will post -2.89 EPS for the current year.

Vera Therapeutics Profile

Vera Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical stage biotechnology company, focuses on developing and commercializing treatments for patients with serious immunological diseases. Its lead product candidate is atacicept, a fusion protein self-administered as a subcutaneous injection that is in Phase III clinical trial for patients with immunoglobulin A nephropathy; and for treatment of lupus nephritis that is in Phase II clinical trial.