Kathleen A. Rickard Sells 79,264 Shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Stock

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 79,264 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.35, for a total value of $661,854.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,608,976 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,784,949.60. This represents a 2.95 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Verona Pharma Trading Down 6.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRNA opened at $61.39 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $58.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.71. Verona Pharma plc has a 52-week low of $11.39 and a 52-week high of $70.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.96 billion, a P/E ratio of -31.97 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a quick ratio of 12.88, a current ratio of 13.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRNA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Roth Mkm initiated coverage on Verona Pharma in a research note on Friday, January 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price objective on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on Verona Pharma from $44.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $57.00 price objective (up previously from $44.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. HC Wainwright boosted their price target on Verona Pharma from $60.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Verona Pharma from $74.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verona Pharma presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $69.14.

Institutional Trading of Verona Pharma

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Verona Pharma by 20.7% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Verona Pharma by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,166 shares of the company’s stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC raised its stake in Verona Pharma by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 17,958 shares of the company’s stock valued at $834,000 after buying an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Verona Pharma by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 62,741 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,914,000 after buying an additional 660 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

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.