Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts give Vera Therapeutics a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating (10 buys, 1 hold, 1 sell) with an average 1‑year price target of $81.45, and several firms (Bank of America, HC Wainwright, Goldman Sachs) recently raised their targets.
• Financials show a $3.10 billion market cap and negative earnings: the company missed Q4 EPS (loss of $1.39 vs. $1.34 estimate) and analysts forecast a -2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.
• Insiders have been selling stock — CEO Marshall Fordyce sold 22,951 shares under a Rule 10b5‑1 plan (≈$1.01M) and insiders sold 56,441 shares (~$2.42M) last quarter — while institutional/hedge fund ownership is reported at 99.21%.

Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $81.4545.

VERA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Vera Therapeutics from $48.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on shares of Vera Therapeutics from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Vera Therapeutics from $99.00 to $96.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Vera Therapeutics from $55.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, December 19th.

Vera Therapeutics Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VERA opened at $43.45 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $41.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.32 and a beta of 1.17. Vera Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $18.76 and a 12-month high of $56.05. The company has a current ratio of 13.64, a quick ratio of 13.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($1.39) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.34) by ($0.05). During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.72) earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Vera Therapeutics will post -2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Marshall Fordyce sold 22,951 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.05, for a total value of $1,010,991.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 235,244 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,362,498.20. This trade represents a 8.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Laurence Matthew Skelton sold 1,582 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.98, for a total transaction of $66,412.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 64,218 shares in the company, valued at $2,695,871.64. This represents a 2.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 56,441 shares of company stock worth $2,416,902. Insiders own 16.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vera Therapeutics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 50.5% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 703 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Optimize Financial Inc grew its position in Vera Therapeutics by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Optimize Financial Inc now owns 17,800 shares of the company's stock worth $901,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC increased its stake in Vera Therapeutics by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC now owns 5,342 shares of the company's stock worth $271,000 after acquiring an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in Vera Therapeutics by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 17,838 shares of the company's stock valued at $903,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 27,847 shares of the company's stock valued at $656,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares during the last quarter. 99.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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