Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume After Analyst Upgrade

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) saw unusually-high trading volume on Monday after Truist Financial raised their price target on the stock from $32.00 to $38.00. Truist Financial currently has a buy rating on the stock. Approximately 999,367 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 33% from the previous session’s volume of 752,009 shares.The stock last traded at $14.82 and had previously closed at $14.46.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Friday, March 1st. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Verona Pharma from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. HC Wainwright upped their target price on Verona Pharma from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Thursday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verona Pharma currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.60.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 36,248 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.96, for a total value of $71,046.08. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,621,552 shares in the company, valued at $5,138,241.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verona Pharma

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRNA. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Verona Pharma during the first quarter valued at $373,000. Ikarian Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Verona Pharma by 2.1% during the first quarter. Ikarian Capital LLC now owns 375,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,039,000 after purchasing an additional 7,842 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,031,994 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,657,000 after acquiring an additional 228,633 shares in the last quarter. Bellevue Group AG raised its position in Verona Pharma by 35.6% in the 1st quarter. Bellevue Group AG now owns 1,139,295 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,331,000 after purchasing an additional 299,299 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hood River Capital Management LLC raised its position in Verona Pharma by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Hood River Capital Management LLC now owns 987,756 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,893,000 after purchasing an additional 41,154 shares during the last quarter. 85.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verona Pharma Stock Up 0.3 %

The company has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a P/E ratio of -18.78 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 18.40 and a current ratio of 18.40. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $14.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.13.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The company reported ($0.32) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.24) by ($0.08). On average, research analysts forecast that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.