Moody Aldrich Partners LLC Sells 43,193 Shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Moody Aldrich Partners LLC cut its stake in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) by 14.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 252,752 shares of the company’s stock after selling 43,193 shares during the period. Verona Pharma comprises approximately 1.3% of Moody Aldrich Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC’s holdings in Verona Pharma were worth $7,272,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. NEA Management Company LLC raised its stake in Verona Pharma by 9.3% during the second quarter. NEA Management Company LLC now owns 5,584,753 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,756,000 after acquiring an additional 476,190 shares in the last quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. now owns 3,314,349 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,925,000 after purchasing an additional 300,000 shares in the last quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. lifted its holdings in Verona Pharma by 74.2% during the 2nd quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 3,092,807 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,722,000 after purchasing an additional 1,316,998 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in Verona Pharma by 12.7% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,031,994 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,657,000 after buying an additional 228,633 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in Verona Pharma by 0.5% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,593,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,645,000 after buying an additional 8,448 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on VRNA. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 target price on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Verona Pharma in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Verona Pharma from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Verona Pharma has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $39.33.

Verona Pharma Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRNA traded up $0.03 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $34.96. The stock had a trading volume of 53,757 shares, compared to its average volume of 911,414. The firm has a market cap of $2.84 billion, a P/E ratio of -22.68 and a beta of 0.44. Verona Pharma plc has a fifty-two week low of $11.39 and a fifty-two week high of $35.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 8.61 and a quick ratio of 8.61. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $29.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.26.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.88) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.53). During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.11) earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.07 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 110,456 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $483,797.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,894,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,237,752.32. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 116,696 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $511,128.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,973,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,202,896.32. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 110,456 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $483,797.28. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 14,894,464 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,237,752.32. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 722,664 shares of company stock valued at $3,165,268. 4.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Verona Pharma Profile

Verona Pharma plc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on development and commercialization of therapies for the treatment of respiratory diseases with unmet medical needs. The company's product candidate is ensifentrine, an inhaled and dual inhibitor of the phosphodiesterase (PDE) 3 and PDE4 enzymes that acts as both a bronchodilator and an anti-inflammatory agent in a single compound, which is in Phase 3 clinical trials for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, and cystic fibrosis.