Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Given Buy Rating at Truist Financial

Truist Financial restated their buy rating on shares of Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $57.00 price objective on the stock, up from their prior price objective of $44.00.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. HC Wainwright raised their price objective on Verona Pharma from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Verona Pharma from $50.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.67.

Verona Pharma Price Performance

Shares of VRNA opened at $46.20 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.72 billion, a P/E ratio of -24.06 and a beta of 0.40. Verona Pharma has a 1 year low of $11.39 and a 1 year high of $51.80. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $40.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $31.21. The company has a current ratio of 13.03, a quick ratio of 12.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.44) by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $5.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.18) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Verona Pharma will post -2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verona Pharma

In related news, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 110,456 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $483,797.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 14,894,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,237,752.32. The trade was a 0.74 % 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 the SEC website. Also, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 183,728 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.01, for a total value of $920,477.28. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,293,736 shares in the company, valued at $66,601,617.36. The trade was a 1.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,094,432 shares of company stock worth $9,748,833. Corporate insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verona Pharma

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 70.6% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 553 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 529 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the third quarter worth approximately $169,000. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the second quarter worth approximately $195,000. Finally, Claro Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Verona Pharma in the third quarter valued at approximately $209,000. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.