Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $40.97 and last traded at $40.28, with a volume of 117883 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.50.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Verona Pharma Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.27 billion, a PE ratio of -20.98 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 12.88, a current ratio of 13.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The company has a 50-day moving average of $35.74 and a 200 day moving average of $26.37.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $2.31 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.18) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Verona Pharma news, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 245,784 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $1,076,533.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 15,004,920 shares in the company, valued at $65,721,549.60. This represents a 1.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 249,728 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $1,093,808.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 14,089,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,714,024.80. This represents a 1.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,094,432 shares of company stock valued at $9,748,833 in the last three months. 4.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verona Pharma

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. CWM LLC purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. EMC Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Verona Pharma by 70.6% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 529 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legato Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the second quarter worth approximately $154,000. 85.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verona Pharma Company Profile

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.