UBS Group AG Boosts Position in Vera Therapeutics, Inc. $VERA

Key Points

• UBS Group AG increased its Vera Therapeutics stake by 27.9% in the fourth quarter, buying 45,214 more shares to bring its holdings to 207,289 shares valued at about $10.5 million.
• Wall Street sentiment is mostly bullish, with 10 Buy ratings, one Hold, and one Sell; the consensus price target is $79, even as some firms recently raised targets as high as $110.
• Vera Therapeutics reported a wider-than-expected quarterly loss, posting EPS of -$1.69 versus the -$1.33 estimate, while the stock was trading around $37.32 and had fallen 5.7%.

UBS Group AG boosted its position in shares of Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA - Free Report) by 27.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 207,289 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 45,214 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG owned approximately 0.32% of Vera Therapeutics worth $10,497,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Vera Therapeutics by 50.5% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 703 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Vera Therapeutics by 2.0% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 27,847 shares of the company's stock worth $656,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Vera Therapeutics by 25.9% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 3,106 shares of the company's stock worth $157,000 after purchasing an additional 639 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in Vera Therapeutics by 2.6% during the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 31,721 shares of the company's stock worth $744,000 after purchasing an additional 816 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 825 shares in the last quarter. 99.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VERA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore set a $91.00 target price on Vera Therapeutics in a research report on Friday. HC Wainwright boosted their target price on Vera Therapeutics from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded Vera Therapeutics from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $88.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $79.00.

Insider Transactions at Vera Therapeutics

In related news, insider William D. Turner sold 2,187 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.98, for a total value of $91,810.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 45,313 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,902,239.74. This represents a 4.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO David Lee Johnson sold 2,579 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.98, for a total value of $108,266.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 45,727 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,919,619.46. The trade was a 5.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 74,941 shares of company stock valued at $3,096,592. Corporate insiders own 15.90% of the company's stock.

Vera Therapeutics Stock Down 5.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:VERA opened at $37.32 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 13.64, a current ratio of 13.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Vera Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $18.76 and a 52-week high of $56.05. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $39.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.61. The company has a market capitalization of $2.68 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.74 and a beta of 0.96.

Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($1.69) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.33) by ($0.36). During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.81) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Vera Therapeutics, Inc. will post -5.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vera Therapeutics Company Profile

Vera Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing novel immunotherapies that harness the body's own regulatory T cells to treat autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. By leveraging a proprietary protein engineering platform, the company designs Treg-selective cytokine variants intended to restore immune balance and provide targeted, disease-modifying effects. Its pipeline comprises multiple preclinical and clinical candidates aimed at indications characterized by chronic inflammation and autoimmunity.

Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Vera Therapeutics collaborates with leading academic and research institutions to advance its development programs.

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