Matisse Capital Has $876,000 Stock Holdings in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Matisse Capital lessened its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA) by 4.2% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 13,794 shares of the company’s stock after selling 606 shares during the quarter. Matisse Capital’s holdings in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share were worth $876,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the first quarter worth $34,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the 4th quarter worth $46,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the 4th quarter worth $72,000. Avanza Fonder AB acquired a new position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the 1st quarter worth $100,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 14.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,837 shares of the company’s stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the period. 85.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:VRNA opened at $93.82 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $78.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $64.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 8.86 and a quick ratio of 8.73. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share has a one year low of $14.14 and a one year high of $99.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.99 billion, a PE ratio of -46.91 and a beta of 0.21.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.22) by $0.49. The business had revenue of $98.65 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.47 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share will post -1.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HC Wainwright upped their target price on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in a research note on Monday, April 28th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $116.00 target price (up from $92.00) on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from $107.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $101.10.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Andrew Fisher sold 26,072 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.98, for a total value of $234,126.56. Following the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 359,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,232,737.14. This represents a 6.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Vikas Sinha sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.92, for a total transaction of $178,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 74,440 shares in the company, valued at approximately $664,004.80. The trade was a 21.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,965,800 shares of company stock valued at $20,056,881. 4.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share

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.