Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA) Trading Up 10.2% – Should You Buy?

Shares of Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA) shot up 10.2% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $45.38 and last traded at $42.9290. 936,065 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 12% from the average session volume of 1,069,727 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.97.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Vera Therapeutics from $99.00 to $96.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Evercore lifted their price target on shares of Vera Therapeutics from $75.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Vera Therapeutics from $55.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $80.80.

Vera Therapeutics Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $44.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $36.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 13.64 and a quick ratio of 13.64. The company has a market capitalization of $2.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.03 and a beta of 1.17.

Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($1.39) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.34) by ($0.05). During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.72) EPS. On average, analysts predict that Vera Therapeutics, Inc. will post -2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vera Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Marshall Fordyce sold 16,925 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.98, for a total transaction of $710,511.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 257,163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,795,702.74. This represents a 6.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Sean Grant sold 4,949 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.98, for a total transaction of $207,759.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 114,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,793,318.38. This represents a 4.15% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 33,490 shares of company stock valued at $1,405,910 in the last three months. 16.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vera Therapeutics

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

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.