Verona Pharma’s (VRNA) Buy Rating Reiterated at Truist Financial

Truist Financial reiterated their buy rating on shares of Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Truist Financial currently has a $57.00 price objective on the stock, up from their previous price objective of $44.00.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. HC Wainwright boosted their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Verona Pharma from $50.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $50.57.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRNA opened at $45.20 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average price of $41.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a PE ratio of -23.54 and a beta of 0.40. Verona Pharma has a 52 week low of $11.39 and a 52 week high of $51.80.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last released its 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 analyst estimates of $2.31 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.18) earnings per share. Analysts predict that Verona Pharma will post -2.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verona Pharma

In related news, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 162,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.01, for a total value of $815,628.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,204,752 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,165,807.52. This represents a 1.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 116,696 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $511,128.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,973,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $61,202,896.32. This trade represents a 0.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,094,432 shares of company stock valued at $9,748,833 in the last three months. 4.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verona Pharma

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Verona Pharma by 70.6% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 553 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 25.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 529 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $169,000. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $195,000. Finally, Claro Advisors LLC bought a new position in Verona Pharma in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $209,000. 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.