Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA) Stock Price Down 5.8% – Time to Sell?

Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA) shares dropped 5.8% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $29.67 and last traded at $30.3690. Approximately 498,425 shares were traded 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Vera Therapeutics from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on Vera Therapeutics from $35.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. HC Wainwright increased their target price on Vera Therapeutics from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vera Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $84.58.

Vera Therapeutics Price Performance

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $39.22. The stock has a market cap of $2.18 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.48 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 13.64, a quick ratio of 13.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($1.69) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.33) by ($0.36). During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.81) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Vera Therapeutics, Inc. will post -6.37 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Marshall Fordyce sold 46,250 shares of Vera Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 151,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,429,346.20. The trade was a 23.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 83,250 shares of company stock worth $3,337,770 over the last quarter. 15.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vera Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VERA. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vera Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in Vera Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $71,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Vera Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $51,000. Sandia Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in Vera Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $127,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 25.9% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 3,106 shares of the company’s stock worth $157,000 after acquiring an additional 639 shares during the last quarter. 99.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.