7,800 Shares in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Bought by Northern Trust Corp

Northern Trust Corp bought a new stake in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 7,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $362,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRNA. Wrapmanager Inc. bought a new stake in Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter valued at about $207,000. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Verona Pharma in the 4th quarter worth approximately $225,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the 4th quarter valued at about $225,000. Choreo LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the 4th quarter worth $230,000. Finally, M&T Bank Corp acquired a new stake in Verona Pharma during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $243,000. 85.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verona Pharma Price Performance

Shares of Verona Pharma stock traded up $0.71 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $84.81. 1,838,843 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,318,692. Verona Pharma plc has a twelve month low of $11.75 and a twelve month high of $85.27. The company has a market cap of $6.88 billion, a PE ratio of -44.17 and a beta of 0.20. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $65.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $57.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 13.03 and a quick ratio of 12.88.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last announced 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 firm had revenue of $98.65 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $41.47 million. Analysts forecast that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VRNA. HC Wainwright lifted their price target on Verona Pharma from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Cowen assumed coverage on Verona Pharma in a research note on Monday, April 28th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $93.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Verona Pharma in a report on Monday, April 21st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $80.00 target price for the company. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on Verona Pharma from $44.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verona Pharma currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $82.13.

Insider Activity

In other Verona Pharma news, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 208,696 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.33, for a total transaction of $1,947,133.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 13,590,168 shares in the company, valued at approximately $126,796,267.44. The trade was a 1.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 79,264 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.35, for a total value of $661,854.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,608,976 shares in the company, valued at $21,784,949.60. The trade was a 2.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,165,064 shares of company stock worth $10,676,335. 4.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.