Squarepoint Ops LLC Acquires 89,253 Shares of Vera Therapeutics, Inc. $VERA

Key Points

• Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its Vera Therapeutics stake by 569.1% in the second quarter, purchasing 89,253 additional shares to hold 104,937 shares valued at approximately $4.5 million.
• Institutional investors own 99.21% of Vera’s shares, while CEO Marshall Fordyce sold 46,250 shares for about $2.0 million under a pre-arranged trading plan.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $80.15, although ratings range from “Strong Buy” to “Sell.”

Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA - Free Report) by 569.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 104,937 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 89,253 shares during the quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC owned 0.15% of Vera Therapeutics worth $4,503,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 30,905 shares of the company's stock worth $753,000 after purchasing an additional 2,210 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in Vera Therapeutics by 22.4% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 98,013 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,354,000 after buying an additional 17,907 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in Vera Therapeutics by 297.1% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 41,578 shares of the company's stock worth $999,000 after buying an additional 62,678 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Vera Therapeutics by 550.5% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 310,547 shares of the company's stock worth $7,316,000 after buying an additional 262,805 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in Vera Therapeutics by 1.7% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 50,418 shares of the company's stock worth $1,188,000 after buying an additional 825 shares during the period. 99.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Vera Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Marshall Fordyce sold 46,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.30, for a total transaction of $1,956,375.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 151,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,429,346.20. This trade represents a 23.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 83,250 shares of company stock worth $3,307,800 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 15.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VERA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, July 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $84.00 price target on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Wedbush reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $34.00 price objective on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Evercore set a $91.00 price objective on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, May 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vera Therapeutics has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $80.15.

Vera Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of Vera Therapeutics stock opened at $35.05 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 10.92, a current ratio of 10.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock's fifty day moving average is $35.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.18. Vera Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.72 and a 52 week high of $56.05. The company has a market capitalization of $2.53 billion, a PE ratio of -5.98 and a beta of 0.96.

Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported ($1.52) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.58) by $0.06. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($1.20) EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Vera Therapeutics, Inc. will post -6.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Vera Therapeutics Profile

Vera Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing treatments for immune-mediated diseases. The company's research is centered on therapies designed to address the underlying causes of autoimmune conditions rather than primarily managing their symptoms.

Vera's leading product candidate is atacicept, an investigational biologic designed to inhibit two proteins involved in the survival and activity of antibody-producing immune cells, B-cell activating factor and a proliferation-inducing ligand.

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