Ally Bridge Group NY LLC Invests $8.83 Million in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share $VRNA

Key Points

• Ally Bridge Group NY LLC acquired 139,067 shares of Verona Pharma PLC, valued at approximately $8.8 million, making it the firm's 3rd largest position.
• Verona Pharma reported $0.13 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, and had revenues of $103.14 million against a consensus estimate of $90.41 million.
• Insiders have sold a total of 1,420,584 shares of Verona Pharma stock over the past 90 days, with 4.80% of the stock currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ally Bridge Group NY LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 139,067 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,829,000. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share comprises about 7.9% of Ally Bridge Group NY LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Ally Bridge Group NY LLC owned about 0.17% of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 14.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,837 shares of the company's stock worth $117,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Advisors Preferred LLC boosted its position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 65.4% in the first quarter. Advisors Preferred LLC now owns 1,599 shares of the company's stock worth $94,000 after buying an additional 632 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 4.1% in the first quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 18,688 shares of the company's stock worth $1,187,000 after buying an additional 730 shares during the period. Finally, Legato Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 3.5% in the first quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 25,731 shares of the company's stock worth $1,634,000 after buying an additional 878 shares during the period. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Cowen downgraded Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. BTIG Research cut Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Truist Financial cut Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Roth Capital cut Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $107.00 target price (up from $90.00) on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.00.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share Price Performance

Shares of VRNA traded down $0.10 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $106.22. 846,094 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,204,125. The company has a market capitalization of $9.19 billion, a PE ratio of -107.30 and a beta of 0.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 10.71 and a quick ratio of 10.54. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $103.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $82.25. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share has a one year low of $25.79 and a one year high of $106.44.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.14. The business had revenue of $103.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.41 million. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share had a negative return on equity of 21.12% and a negative net margin of 36.62%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share

In other news, Director Michael Austwick sold 11,288 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.14, for a total transaction of $148,324.32. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 12,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at $167,035.68. This trade represents a 47.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 208,912 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.14, for a total value of $2,745,103.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 13,376,144 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $175,762,532.16. This represents a 1.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,420,584 shares of company stock worth $17,145,674. 4.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share 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.