Kathleen A. Rickard Sells 240,000 Shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Stock

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 240,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 2,671,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,090,252. The trade was a 8.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Verona Pharma Price Performance

VRNA stock opened at $39.90 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $3.21 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.78 and a beta of 0.42. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $34.25 and its 200 day moving average is $24.99. Verona Pharma plc has a 52 week low of $11.39 and a 52 week high of $40.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 12.88 and a current ratio of 13.03.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the prior year, the business earned ($0.18) earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Institutional Trading of Verona Pharma

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