Insider Selling: Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) CEO Sells 2,400 Shares of Stock

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) CEO David Zaccardelli sold 2,400 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.00, for a total transaction of $12,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 15,202,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,011,760. This trade represents a 0.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

David Zaccardelli also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, November 4th, David Zaccardelli sold 94,144 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.39, for a total transaction of $413,292.16.
• On Friday, November 1st, David Zaccardelli sold 46,888 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $205,369.44.
• On Friday, October 25th, David Zaccardelli sold 4,800 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $21,024.00.
• On Wednesday, October 23rd, David Zaccardelli sold 16 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $70.08.
• On Monday, October 21st, David Zaccardelli sold 110,456 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $483,797.28.
• On Friday, October 18th, David Zaccardelli sold 245,784 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $1,076,533.92.

Verona Pharma Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of VRNA stock opened at $35.66 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 13.03, a quick ratio of 12.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Verona Pharma plc has a 12-month low of $11.39 and a 12-month high of $40.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.85 billion, a P/E ratio of -18.57 and a beta of 0.42. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $32.77 and its 200 day moving average is $23.62.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $5.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.31 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.18) earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VRNA. NEA Management Company LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. NEA Management Company LLC now owns 5,584,753 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,756,000 after purchasing an additional 476,190 shares during the period. Maverick Capital Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 36.3% during the 3rd quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 4,215,973 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,294,000 after acquiring an additional 1,123,166 shares during the last quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. now owns 3,383,950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,356,000 after acquiring an additional 69,601 shares during the period. Eventide Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 359.6% in the 3rd quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC now owns 2,425,846 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,792,000 after purchasing an additional 1,898,065 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in Verona Pharma by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,031,994 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,657,000 after purchasing an additional 228,633 shares during the period. 85.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.