Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA) Shares Down 7.3% on Insider Selling

Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERA) dropped 7.3% on Friday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $39.01 and last traded at $39.12. Approximately 128,823 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 67% from the average daily volume of 387,142 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.19.

Specifically, CEO Marshall Fordyce sold 17,500 shares of Vera Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.74, for a total value of $730,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,603 shares in the company, valued at $5,993,989.22. The trade was a 10.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of Vera Therapeutics from $30.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $107.00 price objective on shares of Vera Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Guggenheim increased their target price on Vera Therapeutics from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Vera Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $63.50.

Vera Therapeutics Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $45.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.01. The company has a quick ratio of 13.76, a current ratio of 13.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -14.18 and a beta of 1.15.

Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported ($0.85) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.64) by ($0.21). As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Vera Therapeutics, Inc. will post -2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vera Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VERA. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Vera Therapeutics by 21.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,983 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of Vera Therapeutics by 14.4% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 9,907 shares of the company’s stock valued at $358,000 after acquiring an additional 1,250 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc raised its stake in Vera Therapeutics by 13.5% in the 2nd quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 11,750 shares of the company’s stock worth $425,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its position in Vera Therapeutics by 19.0% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 13,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $610,000 after acquiring an additional 2,200 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd grew its stake in Vera Therapeutics by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 43,789 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,935,000 after purchasing an additional 3,376 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, 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.