Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Insider Sells $1,176,000.00 in Stock

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 240,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.90, for a total value of $1,176,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,671,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,090,252. This represents a 8.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRNA traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $39.84. 930,124 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 938,694. The company has a quick ratio of 12.88, a current ratio of 13.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Verona Pharma plc has a 1 year low of $11.39 and a 1 year high of $40.13. The company’s 50-day moving average is $33.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.71.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.44) by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $5.62 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.18) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.11 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on VRNA shares. HC Wainwright raised their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Verona Pharma from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Verona Pharma from $50.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $43.83.

Institutional Trading of Verona Pharma

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Verona Pharma by 25.4% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 529 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 70.6% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 553 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. EMC Capital Management bought a new position in Verona Pharma during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Verona Pharma by 37.1% in the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 21,041 shares of the company’s stock worth $605,000 after purchasing an additional 5,691 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

About Verona Pharma

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.