Verrica Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:VRCA) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:VRCA) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the four analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $14.50.

VRCA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. HC Wainwright initiated coverage on shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $12.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 20th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verrica Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VRCA. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Verrica Pharmaceuticals by 347.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 143,818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 111,678 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Verrica Pharmaceuticals by 64.8% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 74,388 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 29,256 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Verrica Pharmaceuticals by 306.7% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 58,711 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 44,275 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Verrica Pharmaceuticals by 23.3% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 139,055 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after acquiring an additional 26,308 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Verrica Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at about $66,000. 42.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 5.8%

Verrica Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $6.12 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 2.10 and a quick ratio of 1.98. The company has a market capitalization of $105.14 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.94 and a beta of 1.49. Verrica Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $3.28 and a one year high of $9.82. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $6.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $6.52.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRCA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 12th. The company reported ($0.41) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.59) by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $5.02 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.51 million. Verrica Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 47.97% and a negative return on equity of 1,077.78%. On average, analysts forecast that Verrica Pharmaceuticals will post -1.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Verrica Pharmaceuticals Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of topical therapies for dermatological conditions. Its lead investigational product, VP-102, is a standardized formulation of cantharidin in a pre-measured applicator designed to treat molluscum contagiosum and common warts. Verrica’s approach emphasizes consistency of dosing and patient convenience, aiming to improve upon off‐label use of existing treatments.

Beyond VP-102, Verrica is advancing VP-103, a next‐generation topical candidate intended to optimize tolerability while maintaining efficacy against viral skin lesions.