Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Reaches New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $50.00 to $64.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Verona Pharma traded as high as $39.40 and last traded at $39.35, with a volume of 398136 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $38.15.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on VRNA. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. HC Wainwright raised their price target on Verona Pharma from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on Verona Pharma from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.83.

Insider Transactions at Verona Pharma

In other Verona Pharma news, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 110,456 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $483,797.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 14,894,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,237,752.32. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 249,728 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $1,093,808.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 14,089,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $61,714,024.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 110,456 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 868,840 shares of company stock valued at $3,805,519 in the last quarter. 4.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verona Pharma

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in Verona Pharma during the third quarter worth approximately $849,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the 3rd quarter worth $465,000. Atria Investments Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the third quarter worth $548,000. Cahill Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the third quarter valued at $223,000. Finally, Rosalind Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Verona Pharma by 10.0% in the third quarter. Rosalind Advisors Inc. now owns 275,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,912,000 after purchasing an additional 25,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Verona Pharma Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $30.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.33. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $3.18 billion, a PE ratio of -25.06 and a beta of 0.42.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.44) by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $5.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.18) EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.