185,860 Shares in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Bought by Castleark Management LLC

Castleark Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 185,860 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,631,000. Castleark Management LLC owned approximately 0.23% of Verona Pharma as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EMC Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 3,400.0% in the fourth quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 3,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 3,400 shares in the last quarter. Wrapmanager Inc. acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the fourth quarter valued at $207,000. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma in the 4th quarter worth about $225,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Verona Pharma during the 4th quarter worth about $225,000. Finally, Choreo LLC purchased a new position in Verona Pharma during the 4th quarter valued at about $230,000. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group increased 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. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Monday, April 21st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $80.00 target price for the company. Roth Capital set a $83.00 target price on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Friday, February 28th. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Monday, April 28th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. Finally, HC Wainwright increased their price objective on Verona Pharma from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $81.50.

Verona Pharma Stock Up 3.3%

Shares of Verona Pharma stock traded up $2.37 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $75.06. 861,523 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,303,182. The company has a market cap of $6.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -39.09 and a beta of 0.20. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $64.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $55.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 12.88 and a current ratio of 13.03. Verona Pharma plc has a 52 week low of $11.39 and a 52 week high of $75.60.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.22) by $0.49. The business had revenue of $98.65 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.47 million. Equities analysts expect that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verona Pharma

In other Verona Pharma news, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 90,360 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.98, for a total value of $811,432.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 14,377,176 shares of the company's stock, valued at $129,107,040.48. This represents a 0.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Vikas Sinha sold 20,000 shares of Verona Pharma 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 74,440 shares in the company, valued at $664,004.80. The trade was a 21.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 365,064 shares of company stock valued at $3,208,741 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 4.80% of the company's stock.

Verona Pharma 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.