Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Shares Sold by PFG Investments LLC

PFG Investments LLC decreased its position in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) by 17.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,800 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,800 shares during the quarter. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Verona Pharma were worth $1,059,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRNA. CWM LLC purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. EMC Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Verona Pharma in the second quarter worth $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 70.6% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 553 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 25.4% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legato Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Verona Pharma in the second quarter valued at $154,000. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on VRNA. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on Verona Pharma from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 price target on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Six 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 price target of $39.33.

Verona Pharma Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of Verona Pharma stock opened at $33.86 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 8.61, a quick ratio of 8.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.50. The stock has a market cap of $2.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -43.97 and a beta of 0.44. Verona Pharma plc has a 12-month low of $11.39 and a 12-month high of $35.62.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.88) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.53). During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.11) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 141,360 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $619,156.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,672,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,885,812.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 110,456 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $483,797.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,894,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,237,752.32. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 141,360 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $619,156.80. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,672,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,885,812.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 868,840 shares of company stock valued at $3,805,519 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

Verona Pharma Profile

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.