Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Shares Up 6.3% – What’s Next?

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) shot up 6.3% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $67.73 and last traded at $68.21. 1,372,028 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 8% from the average session volume of 1,486,341 shares. The stock had previously closed at $64.19.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRNA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Verona Pharma from $64.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Verona Pharma from $44.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 target price (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Roth Capital upgraded Verona Pharma to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $57.00 target price (up previously from $44.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $57.14.

Verona Pharma Trading Up 5.9 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 12.88 and a current ratio of 13.03. The company has a market cap of $5.56 billion, a P/E ratio of -35.40 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $52.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.58.

Insider Activity at Verona Pharma

In other Verona Pharma news, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 240,000 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 2,671,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,090,252. This trade represents a 8.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 98,704 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.01, for a total value of $494,507.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,177,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $71,028,252.96. The trade was a 0.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 952,488 shares of company stock valued at $4,743,881 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Verona Pharma

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter worth $46,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter worth $72,000. Castleark Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter worth $8,631,000. Woodline Partners LP grew its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 516,605 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,991,000 after acquiring an additional 8,660 shares during the period. Finally, Velan Capital Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter worth $2,322,000. 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.