| SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION | |
| Washington, D.C. 20549 | |
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| |
| SCHEDULE 13G | |
|
| |
| Under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 | |
| (Amendment No.)* | |
|
Vera Therapeutics, Inc. | |
| (Name of Issuer) | |
|
Class A Common Stock, par value $0.001 per share | |
| (Title of Class of Securities) | |
|
92337R101 | |
| (CUSIP Number) | |
|
December 31, 2023 | |
| (Date of event which requires filing of this statement) | |
| Check the appropriate box to designate the rule pursuant to which this Schedule 13G is filed: | |
| x | Rule 13d-1(b) |
| ¨ | Rule 13d-1(c) |
| ¨ | Rule 13d-1(d) |
| (Page 1 of 6 Pages) | |
______________________________
* The remainder of this cover page shall be filled out for a reporting person's initial filing on this form with respect to the subject class of securities, and for any subsequent amendment containing information which would alter the disclosures provided in a prior cover page.
The information required in the remainder of this cover page shall not be deemed to be "filed" for the purpose of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Act") or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section of the Act but shall be subject to all other provisions of the Act (however, see the Notes).
CUSIP No. 92337R101 | SC 13G | Page 2 of 6 pages |
| 1 |
NAMES OF REPORTING PERSONS Woodline Partners LP | |||
| 2 | CHECK THE APPROPRIATE BOX IF A MEMBER OF A GROUP |
(a) ¨ (b) ¨ | ||
| 3 | SEC USE ONLY | |||
| 4 |
CITIZENSHIP OR PLACE OF ORGANIZATION Delaware | |||
| NUMBER OF SHARES BENEFICIALLY OWNED BY EACH REPORTING PERSON WITH |
5 |
SOLE VOTING POWER 1,140,632* | ||
| 6 |
SHARED VOTING POWER - 0 - | |||
| 7 |
SOLE DISPOSITIVE POWER 1,140,632* | |||
| 8 |
SHARED DISPOSITIVE POWER - 0 - | |||
| 9 |
AGGREGATE AMOUNT BENEFICIALLY OWNED BY EACH REPORTING PERSON 1,140,632* | |||
| 10 | CHECK BOX IF THE AGGREGATE AMOUNT IN ROW (9) EXCLUDES CERTAIN SHARES | ¨ | ||
| 11 |
PERCENT OF CLASS REPRESENTED BY AMOUNT IN ROW (9) 2.2%* | |||
| 12 |
TYPE OF REPORTING PERSON IA | |||
* The information set forth on this cover page reflects information as of the date hereof. As of December 31, 2023, the Reporting Persons may have been deemed to beneficially own 2,507,140 shares of Class A Common Stock representing approximately 5.6% of the outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock as of such time.
CUSIP No. 92337R101 | SC 13G | Page 3 of 6 pages |
| Item 1(a). | NAME OF ISSUER. |
| The name of the issuer is Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (the "Company"). |
| Item 1(b). | ADDRESS OF ISSUER'S PRINCIPAL EXECUTIVE OFFICES: |
| The Company's principal executive offices are located at 8000 Marina Boulevard, Suite 120, Brisbane, California 94005. |
| Item 2(a) | NAME OF PERSON FILING: |
| This statement is filed by Woodline Partners LP ("Woodline Partners" or the "Reporting Person"), a Delaware limited partnership, and the investment adviser to Woodline Master Fund LP (the "Woodline Fund"), with respect to the shares of Class A Common Stock (as defined in Item 2(d) below) directly held by the Woodline Fund. | |
| The filing of this statement should not be construed as an admission that the foregoing persons or the Reporting Person is, for the purposes of Section 13 of the Act, the beneficial owner of the shares of Class A Common Stock reported herein. |
| Item 2(b). | ADDRESS OF PRINCIPAL BUSINESS OFFICE OR, IF NONE, RESIDENCE: |
| The address of the business office of Woodline Partners is 4 Embarcadero Center, Suite 3450, San Francisco, CA 94111. |
| Item 2(c). | CITIZENSHIP: |
| Woodline Partners is a Delaware limited partnership. |
| Item 2(d). | TITLE OF CLASS OF SECURITIES: |
| Class A common stock, par value $0.001 per share (the "Class A Common Stock"). |
CUSIP No. 92337R101 | SC 13G | Page 4 of 6 pages |
| Item 2(e). | CUSIP NUMBER: |
| 92337R101 |
| Item 3. | IF THIS STATEMENT IS FILED PURSUANT TO §§ 240.13d-1(b) OR 240.13d-2(b) OR (c), CHECK WHETHER THE PERSON FILING IS A: |
| (a) | ¨ | Broker or dealer registered under Section 15 of the Act (15 U.S.C. 78o); | |
| (b) | ¨ | Bank as defined in Section 3(a)(6) of the Act (15 U.S.C. 78c); | |
| (c) | ¨ | Insurance company as defined in Section 3(a)(19) of the Act (15 U.S.C. 78c); | |
| (d) | ¨ | Investment company registered under Section 8 of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a-8); | |
| (e) | x | Investment adviser in accordance with Rule 13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(E); | |
| (f) | ¨ |
Employee benefit plan or endowment fund in accordance with Rule 13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(F);
| |
| (g) | ¨ |
Parent holding company or control person in accordance with Rule 13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(G); | |
| (h) | ¨ |
Savings association as defined in Section 3(b) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1813);
| |
| (i) | ¨ |
Church plan that is excluded from the definition of an investment company under Section 3(c)(14) of the Investment Company Act (15 U.S.C. 80a-3);
| |
| (j) | ¨ | Non-U.S. institution in accordance with Rule 13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(J); | |
| (k) | ¨ | Group, in accordance with Rule 13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(K). |
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If filing as a non-U.S. institution in accordance with Rule 13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(J), please specify the type of institution:______________________________________ | |
| Item 4. | OWNERSHIP. |
|
The information required by Items 4(a) - (c) is set forth in Rows 5 - 11 of the cover page for the Reporting Person and is incorporated herein by reference.
The percentages set forth herein as of the date hereof, are calculated based upon 52,497,462 shares of Class A Common Stock outstanding as reported in the Company’s Prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b)(5) with the Securities and Exchange Commission on January 30, 2024. |
CUSIP No. 92337R101 | SC 13G | Page 5 of 6 pages |
| The percentages set forth herein as of December 31, 2023, are calculated based upon 44,432,945 shares of Class A Common Stock outstanding as of November 7, 2023 as reported in the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2023, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 9, 2023. | |
| Item 5. | OWNERSHIP OF FIVE PERCENT OR LESS OF A CLASS. |
| If this statement is being filed to report the fact that as of the date hereof the reporting person has ceased to be the beneficial owner of more than five percent of the class of securities, check the following: x |
| Item 6. | OWNERSHIP OF MORE THAN FIVE PERCENT ON BEHALF OF ANOTHER PERSON. |
| See Item 2. The Woodline Fund has right to receive or the power to direct the receipt of dividends from, or the proceeds from the sale of, the shares of Class A Common Stock reported herein. |
| Item 7. | IDENTIFICATION AND CLASSIFICATION OF THE SUBSIDIARY WHICH ACQUIRED THE SECURITY BEING REPORTED ON BY THE PARENT HOLDING COMPANY. |
| Not applicable. |
| Item 8. | IDENTIFICATION AND CLASSIFICATION OF MEMBERS OF THE GROUP. |
| Not applicable. |
| Item 9. | NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION OF GROUP. |
| Not applicable. |
| Item 10. |
CERTIFICATION.
The Reporting Person hereby makes the following certification:
By signing below the Reporting Person certifies that, to the best of his or its knowledge and belief, the securities referred to above were acquired and are held in the ordinary course of business and were not acquired for the purpose of or with the effect of changing or influencing the control of the issuer of the securities and were not acquired and are not held in connection with or as a participant in any transaction having that purpose or effect.
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CUSIP No. 92337R101 | SC 13G | Page 6 of 6 pages |
SIGNATURES
After reasonable inquiry and to the best of his or its knowledge and belief, the undersigned certifies that the information set forth in this statement is true, complete and correct.
DATED: February 12, 2024
| WOODLINE PARTNERS LP | ||
| By: | /s/ Erin Mullen | |
| Name: | Erin Mullen | |
| Title: | General Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer | |