Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $57.49 and last traded at $57.16, with a volume of 188352 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $54.83.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRNA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Roth Mkm initiated coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Friday, January 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price target on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Roth Capital raised Verona Pharma to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Verona Pharma from $64.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $53.14.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 13.03 and a quick ratio of 12.88. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $45.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.04.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.56) EPS 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 company posted ($0.18) earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.95 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Verona Pharma

In related news, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 94,144 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.39, for a total transaction of $413,292.16. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 15,204,752 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $66,748,861.28. This trade represents a 0.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 98,704 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.01, for a total value of $494,507.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,177,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $71,028,252.96. This trade represents a 0.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,129,816 shares of company stock worth $5,523,815 in the last ninety days. 4.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verona Pharma

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of VRNA. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Verona Pharma by 70.6% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 25.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares during the period. EMC Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 3,400.0% during the 4th quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 3,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,000 after acquiring an additional 3,400 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 3rd quarter valued at about $169,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Verona Pharma in the second quarter valued at about $195,000. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verona Pharma Company 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.