Atle Fund Management AB Boosts Stock Position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share $VRNA

Key Points

• Atle Fund Management AB increased its holdings in Verona Pharma PLC by 35.8%, owning 47,100 shares valued at approximately $4.45 million, making it the firm's 20th largest investment.
• Verona Pharma reported earnings of $0.13 per share, surpassing expectations and generating revenue of $103.14 million, significantly above the consensus estimate of $90.41 million.
• Insiders sold a total of 540,584 shares last quarter, with the CEO selling 208,912 shares valued at $2.75 million, marking a decrease in ownership positions for insiders.

Atle Fund Management AB boosted its position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 35.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 47,100 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 12,410 shares during the period. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share accounts for about 1.9% of Atle Fund Management AB's portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Atle Fund Management AB owned 0.06% of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share worth $4,455,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of VRNA. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 44.2% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 630 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the 1st quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the 1st quarter worth approximately $58,000. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on VRNA shares. BTIG Research cut Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Piper Sandler cut Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $107.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $109.00.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share Trading Up 0.2%

NASDAQ:VRNA traded up $0.23 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $106.25. 1,244,235 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,165,879. The company has a quick ratio of 10.54, a current ratio of 10.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The business has a 50-day moving average of $105.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.34. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share has a twelve month low of $27.54 and a twelve month high of $106.45. The company has a market capitalization of $8.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -107.32 and a beta of 0.14.

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

Insider Activity at Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share

In other Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share news, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 208,912 shares of the company'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 $2,745,103.68. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 12,464,968 shares in the company, valued at $163,789,679.52. This represents a 1.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 58,336 shares of the company'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 $766,535.04. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 2,607,472 shares in the company, valued at $34,262,182.08. This represents a 2.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 540,584 shares of company stock valued at $7,103,274 over the last ninety days. 4.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share 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.