American Century Companies Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share $VRNA

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. reduced its holdings in Verona Pharma PLC by 50.2%, selling 310,985 shares and retaining approximately 308,820 shares valued at $19.6 million.
• Notable insider transactions occurred with Kathleen A. Rickard selling 58,336 shares and Kenneth Cunningham selling 10,808 shares on August 1st, indicating a trend of insider selling.
• Verona Pharma reported a quarterly EPS of $0.13, exceeding expectations, alongside a revenue of $103.14 million, resulting in a consensus rating of "Hold" from analysts.

American Century Companies Inc. lessened its holdings in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 50.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 308,820 shares of the company's stock after selling 310,985 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 0.38% of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share worth $19,607,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the first quarter worth about $58,716,000. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the first quarter worth about $698,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the first quarter worth about $108,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the first quarter worth about $5,549,000. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the first quarter worth about $638,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.88% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Lisa Deschamps sold 9,464 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.14, for a total value of $124,356.96. Following the sale, the director owned 84,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,115,007.84. This trade represents a 10.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael Austwick sold 11,288 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owned 12,712 shares in the company, valued at $167,035.68. This represents a 47.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,834,144 shares of company stock valued at $21,004,189 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 4.80% of the company's stock.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:VRNA traded up $0.11 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $105.78. 782,269 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,244,545. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $101.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $79.70. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share has a 52-week low of $24.50 and a 52-week high of $105.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 10.54 and a current ratio of 10.71. The stock has a market cap of $9.15 billion, a P/E ratio of -106.85 and a beta of 0.12.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRNA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial cut shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. HC Wainwright reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $107.00 price target (up previously from $90.00) on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the company from $138.00 to $107.00 in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $109.00.

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.