Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Reaches New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday after Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on the stock from $44.00 to $72.00. Canaccord Genuity Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Verona Pharma traded as high as $62.00 and last traded at $62.25, with a volume of 250377 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $59.33.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on VRNA. Roth Capital raised Verona Pharma to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $57.00 target price (up previously from $44.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $64.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target (up from $42.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Roth Mkm started coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Friday, January 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price objective for the company. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verona Pharma presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.14.

Insider Transactions at Verona Pharma

In other news, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 12,936 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.00, for a total transaction of $64,680.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 14,276,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,380,000. The trade was a 0.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 23,240 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.00, for a total value of $116,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 15,177,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $75,887,560. The trade was a 0.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 952,488 shares of company stock worth $4,743,881. Insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verona Pharma

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VRNA. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Verona Pharma by 20.7% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,166 shares of the company’s stock worth $279,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the period. 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 during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 62,741 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,914,000 after buying an additional 660 shares during the period. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Verona Pharma by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 22,848 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,061,000 after buying an additional 1,807 shares during the last quarter. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verona Pharma Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $5.01 billion, a P/E ratio of -32.66 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 12.88, a current ratio of 13.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The business’s 50 day moving average is $48.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.32.

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.