Insider Selling: Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) CFO Sells 249,728 Shares of Stock

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 249,728 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $1,093,808.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 14,089,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $61,714,024.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Verona Pharma Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRNA opened at $34.43 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 8.61 and a quick ratio of 8.61. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $21.26. Verona Pharma plc has a 1 year low of $11.39 and a 1 year high of $35.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.80 billion, a PE ratio of -22.36 and a beta of 0.44.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRNA. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 25.4% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Verona Pharma by 70.6% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC purchased a new position in Verona Pharma during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. EMC Capital Management bought a new stake in Verona Pharma during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its position in Verona Pharma by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 74,294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,195,000 after purchasing an additional 2,640 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Verona Pharma from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Verona Pharma in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $50.00 price target for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $39.33.

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.