Insider Selling: Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) CFO Sells 48,888 Shares of Stock

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 48,888 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $214,129.44. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 14,374,520 shares in the company, valued at $62,960,397.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Verona Pharma Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of VRNA stock opened at $38.39 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 8.61 and a quick ratio of 8.61. Verona Pharma plc has a one year low of $11.39 and a one year high of $39.40. The company’s 50-day moving average is $31.07 and its 200 day moving average is $22.49.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last announced 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 company had revenue of $5.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.18) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 1,054.4% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 23,412 shares of the company’s stock valued at $377,000 after buying an additional 21,384 shares during the last quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 1st quarter valued at about $412,000. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,593,833 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,645,000 after acquiring an additional 8,448 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 3.7% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 74,294 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,195,000 after acquiring an additional 2,640 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 2.7% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 255,609 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,113,000 after purchasing an additional 6,645 shares during the last quarter. 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.