Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA) Shares Up 7.6% Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA) shares traded up 7.6% during trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $30.11 and last traded at $29.88. 164,563 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 896,284 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.77.

The company reported ($0.72) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by $0.11.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VERA has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $58.00 price target for the company. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Vera Therapeutics from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $49.00 price objective for the company. Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of Vera Therapeutics from $30.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Vera Therapeutics from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.11.

Insider Activity at Vera Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Marshall Fordyce sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.07, for a total transaction of $753,725.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 85,942 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,701,521.94. This represents a 16.92 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 52,500 shares of company stock valued at $2,305,625. 21.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vera Therapeutics

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VERA. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of Vera Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at about $56,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 30.1% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 80,106 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,388,000 after acquiring an additional 18,532 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP boosted its holdings in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 20.1% during the 4th quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 1,202,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,852,000 after acquiring an additional 201,573 shares during the last quarter. Vestal Point Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Vera Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at about $45,462,000. Finally, Thornburg Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 91.1% in the 4th quarter. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. now owns 59,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,495,000 after purchasing an additional 28,124 shares during the period. 99.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vera Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.88 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.31 and a beta of 1.11. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.35. The company has a current ratio of 13.76, a quick ratio of 13.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

About Vera Therapeutics

Vera Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical stage biotechnology company, focuses on developing and commercializing treatments for patients with serious immunological diseases. Its lead product candidate is atacicept, a fusion protein self-administered as a subcutaneous injection that is in Phase III clinical trial for patients with immunoglobulin A nephropathy; and for treatment of lupus nephritis that is in Phase II clinical trial.