Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA) Trading Down 5.2% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Vera Therapeutics shares fell 5.2% to $34.91, with trading volume down 73% from its average.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive overall, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $81.15, despite ratings ranging from Sell to Strong Buy.
• The company beat its latest quarterly EPS estimate, reporting a loss of $1.52 versus the expected $1.58 loss. Institutional investors own 99.21% of the stock, while CEO Marshall Fordyce recently sold 46,250 shares.

Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 5.2% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $35.45 and last traded at $34.91. Approximately 394,678 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 1,478,985 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.82.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on VERA. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a report on Friday, July 17th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Vera Therapeutics from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Evercore set a $91.00 target price on Vera Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, May 15th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $34.00 price target on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a report on Monday, August 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $81.15.

Vera Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 10.92 and a current ratio of 10.92. The company has a market cap of $2.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.86 and a beta of 0.92. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $36.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $37.83.

Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 10th. The company reported ($1.52) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.58) by $0.06. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($1.20) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vera Therapeutics, Inc. will post -6.43 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vera Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Marshall Fordyce sold 46,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.30, for a total value of $1,956,375.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 151,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,429,346.20. This represents a 23.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 15.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vera Therapeutics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Vera Therapeutics by 49.0% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,461,976 shares of the company's stock worth $276,595,000 after buying an additional 1,795,537 shares during the last quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. increased its stake in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 8.8% in the 3rd quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. now owns 3,641,157 shares of the company's stock valued at $105,812,000 after acquiring an additional 293,040 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,570,401 shares of the company's stock valued at $180,805,000 after acquiring an additional 379,748 shares during the last quarter. Vestal Point Capital LP raised its position in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 24.0% in the 2nd quarter. Vestal Point Capital LP now owns 3,100,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $73,036,000 after acquiring an additional 600,000 shares during the period. Finally, Eversept Partners LP raised its position in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Eversept Partners LP now owns 3,072,304 shares of the company's stock valued at $155,581,000 after acquiring an additional 264,468 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.21% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source