Magnetar Financial LLC Makes New $408,000 Investment in Vera Therapeutics, Inc. $VERA

Key Points

• Magnetar Financial LLC has acquired 16,982 shares of Vera Therapeutics, Inc., valued at approximately $408,000, reflecting growing interest from institutional investors in the company.
• Vera Therapeutics reported a quarterly loss of ($1.20) EPS, which missed analysts' expectations, and is projected to have an EPS of ($2.89) for the current year.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on Vera Therapeutics, with one strong buy, seven buys, and two holds, and an average price target of $63.00 for the stock.

Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 16,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $408,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vestal Point Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Vera Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth about $45,462,000. Integral Health Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Vera Therapeutics by 130.0% during the 4th quarter. Integral Health Asset Management LLC now owns 1,150,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,634,000 after acquiring an additional 650,000 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Vera Therapeutics by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,754,832 shares of the company's stock worth $114,212,000 after acquiring an additional 377,783 shares during the period. Paradigm Biocapital Advisors LP lifted its position in Vera Therapeutics by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Paradigm Biocapital Advisors LP now owns 1,437,339 shares of the company's stock worth $60,785,000 after acquiring an additional 340,488 shares during the period. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 18.4% in the 1st quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,675,367 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,243,000 after purchasing an additional 260,188 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.21% of the company's stock.

Vera Therapeutics Price Performance

VERA stock traded up $2.29 during trading on Friday, reaching $24.19. 2,747,955 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,781,418. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 17.03 and a current ratio of 17.03. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $22.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $23.31. Vera Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $18.53 and a 52-week high of $51.61. The company has a market cap of $1.54 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.76 and a beta of 1.17.

Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported ($1.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.82) by ($0.38). During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.62) EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Vera Therapeutics, Inc. will post -2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VERA has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Vera Therapeutics from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Wolfe Research restated a "peer perform" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, August 4th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $85.00 target price (up previously from $75.00) on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vera Therapeutics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $63.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Patrick G. Enright acquired 209,393 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $20.87 per share, with a total value of $4,370,031.91. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 3,569,522 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $74,495,924.14. This trade represents a 6.23% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 16.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vera Therapeutics Company 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.