Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA) Stock Price Down 5.8% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Vera Therapeutics shares fell 5.8% to about $30.37 in midday trading, with volume roughly 64% below the average daily level.
• Despite the decline, Wall Street sentiment remains favorable: 11 analysts rate the stock a Buy, with an average target price of $84.58 versus the current price.
• The company reported a quarterly loss of $1.69 per share, missing estimates by $0.36, while CEO Marshall Fordyce sold 46,250 shares under a pre-arranged trading plan.

Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA - Get Free Report) shares were down 5.8% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $29.67 and last traded at $30.3690. Approximately 498,425 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 64% from the average daily volume of 1,387,335 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.23.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VERA has been the subject of several research reports. Evercore set a $91.00 price objective on Vera Therapeutics in a report on Friday, May 15th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Needham & Company LLC set a $125.00 price objective on Vera Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Vera Therapeutics from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vera Therapeutics presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $84.58.

Vera Therapeutics Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a PE ratio of -5.60 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $36.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 13.64 and a quick ratio of 13.64.

Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($1.69) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.33) by ($0.36). During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.81) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Vera Therapeutics, Inc. will post -6.37 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vera Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Marshall Fordyce sold 46,250 shares of Vera Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $6,429,346.20. This trade represents a 23.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 83,250 shares of company stock worth $3,337,770. 15.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Optimize Financial Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Optimize Financial Inc now owns 17,800 shares of the company's stock worth $901,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the period. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC now owns 5,342 shares of the company's stock worth $271,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Vera Therapeutics by 2.4% during the 4th 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. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Vera Therapeutics by 2.0% during 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 period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in Vera Therapeutics by 25.9% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 3,106 shares of the company's stock valued at $157,000 after purchasing an additional 639 shares during the last quarter. 99.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Vera Therapeutics

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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