Dorsey Wright & Associates Invests $2.31 Million in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Dorsey Wright & Associates purchased a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 80,194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,307,000. Dorsey Wright & Associates owned 0.10% of Verona Pharma at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Verona Pharma by 25.4% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted 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 worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares during the period. CWM LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. EMC Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the second quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Verona Pharma by 37.1% in the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 21,041 shares of the company’s stock worth $605,000 after buying an additional 5,691 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Verona Pharma Stock Up 1.2 %

VRNA stock opened at $40.50 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $35.74 and a 200 day moving average of $26.28. The firm has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a PE ratio of -21.09 and a beta of 0.46. Verona Pharma plc has a twelve month low of $11.39 and a twelve month high of $40.76. The company has a quick ratio of 12.88, a current ratio of 13.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.56) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.44) by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $5.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.31 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.18) earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on VRNA shares. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Verona Pharma from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. HC Wainwright upped their price target on Verona Pharma from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Verona Pharma from $50.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verona Pharma

In other Verona Pharma news, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 249,728 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $1,093,808.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,089,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,714,024.80. This trade represents a 1.74 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 240,000 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.90, for a total value of $1,176,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,671,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,090,252. The trade was a 8.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,094,432 shares of company stock worth $9,748,833. 4.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.