HC Wainwright Analysts Increase Earnings Estimates for Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) – Equities researchers at HC Wainwright raised their FY2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Verona Pharma in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, September 17th. HC Wainwright analyst R. Selvaraju now anticipates that the company will post earnings of ($1.20) per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of ($1.28). HC Wainwright currently has a “Buy” rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Verona Pharma’s current full-year earnings is ($2.07) per share.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.88) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.53). During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.11) EPS.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Verona Pharma from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verona Pharma presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $36.00.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

Shares of VRNA stock opened at $29.23 on Thursday. 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 market capitalization of $2.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -37.96 and a beta of 0.44. Verona Pharma has a one year low of $11.39 and a one year high of $30.73. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $25.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $18.58.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verona Pharma

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VRNA. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in Verona Pharma by 58.8% in the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 405,819 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,868,000 after purchasing an additional 150,210 shares in the last quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 10.0% in the second quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. now owns 3,314,349 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,925,000 after buying an additional 300,000 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the second quarter valued at about $859,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 527,640 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,630,000 after buying an additional 23,567 shares during the period. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 74.2% during the 2nd quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 3,092,807 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,722,000 after buying an additional 1,316,998 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Verona Pharma Company 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.