Kathleen A. Rickard Sells 36,248 Shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Stock

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 36,248 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.96, for a total transaction of $71,046.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 2,621,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,138,241.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

Shares of Verona Pharma stock opened at $15.69 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $16.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $16.17. Verona Pharma plc has a 1 year low of $11.83 and a 1 year high of $23.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 33.33 and a quick ratio of 33.33.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported ($0.16) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.23) by $0.07. Equities research analysts anticipate that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. First Turn Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 4th quarter worth approximately $23,981,000. Eventide Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma during the third quarter worth $13,855,000. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in Verona Pharma by 49.3% during the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,493,530 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,645,000 after buying an additional 822,832 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. purchased a new position in Verona Pharma in the third quarter valued at $4,566,000. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter worth about $4,949,000. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $33.00 price target on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 price objective on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Monday, March 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $33.60.

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.