Axa S.A. Has $9.47 Million Stock Position in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

AXA S.A. trimmed its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 26.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 203,883 shares of the company's stock after selling 74,142 shares during the period. AXA S.A. owned approximately 0.26% of Verona Pharma worth $9,468,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the fourth quarter valued at $720,000. Shilanski & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 4th quarter worth about $305,000. Values First Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Verona Pharma by 36.9% during the 4th quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. now owns 23,505 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,092,000 after purchasing an additional 6,331 shares during the last quarter. Choreo LLC acquired a new position in Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter valued at about $230,000. Finally, Legato Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Verona Pharma by 132.9% during the fourth quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 24,853 shares of the company's stock worth $1,154,000 after buying an additional 14,183 shares during the last quarter. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verona Pharma

In other Verona Pharma news, Director Vikas Sinha sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.92, for a total value of $178,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 74,440 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $664,004.80. The trade was a 21.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 79,264 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.35, for a total value of $661,854.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,608,976 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,784,949.60. This represents a 2.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 365,064 shares of company stock valued at $3,208,741. Corporate insiders own 4.80% of the company's stock.

Verona Pharma Trading Down 4.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRNA traded down $2.90 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $63.36. The company had a trading volume of 1,937,837 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,285,923. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $63.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.86. The stock has a market cap of $5.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -33.00 and a beta of 0.20. The company has a current ratio of 13.03, a quick ratio of 12.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Verona Pharma plc has a 12 month low of $11.39 and a 12 month high of $74.18.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.22) by $0.49. The company had revenue of $98.65 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.47 million. On average, analysts predict that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.95 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRNA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Monday, April 28th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Verona Pharma from $93.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $44.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. HC Wainwright raised their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on Verona Pharma in a research note on Monday, April 28th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $100.00 target price for the company. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $81.50.

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.