Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Shares Sold by Affinity Asset Advisors LLC

Affinity Asset Advisors LLC decreased its stake in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) by 14.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 700,000 shares of the company’s stock after selling 117,833 shares during the period. Verona Pharma accounts for 1.2% of Affinity Asset Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Affinity Asset Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.87% of Verona Pharma worth $10,122,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRNA. CWM LLC bought a new stake in Verona Pharma in the second quarter valued at $29,000. EMC Capital Management bought a new stake in Verona Pharma in the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Legato Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Verona Pharma in the 2nd quarter worth about $154,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the second quarter valued at approximately $195,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

VRNA stock opened at $29.66 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $2.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -38.52 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 8.61 and a current ratio of 8.61. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $25.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.96. Verona Pharma plc has a 52 week low of $11.39 and a 52 week high of $30.73.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.88) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.53). During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.11) EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRNA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Verona Pharma presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $36.00.

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.