LPL Financial LLC Purchases 20,500 Shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in Verona Pharma PLC by 68.3%, acquiring an additional 20,500 shares, bringing its total ownership to 50,533 shares valued at approximately $3.2 million.
• Verona Pharma reported earnings that exceeded analysts' expectations, with $0.13 earnings per share and revenue of $103.14 million, compared to forecasted figures of ($0.01) EPS and $90.41 million in revenue.
• Analyst ratings for Verona Pharma are mixed, with a consensus average rating of "Hold" and a price target of $109.00, indicating cautious optimism among market experts.

LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 68.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,533 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 20,500 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.06% of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share worth $3,208,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 62,741 shares of the company's stock worth $2,914,000 after acquiring an additional 660 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 27.2% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 67,126 shares of the company's stock worth $3,117,000 after acquiring an additional 14,362 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the 4th quarter worth about $720,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the 4th quarter worth about $225,000. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC grew its stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 17,958 shares of the company's stock worth $834,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share Price Performance

Shares of VRNA stock opened at $105.27 on Friday. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share has a 12 month low of $24.50 and a 12 month high of $105.50. The company has a market capitalization of $8.96 billion, a PE ratio of -106.33 and a beta of 0.12. The firm's 50-day moving average is $99.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 10.71 and a quick ratio of 10.54.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on VRNA. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Cowen cut shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Zacks Research raised shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Wolfe Research cut shares of 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 reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $107.00 price target (up previously from $90.00) on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.00.

Insider Activity

In other Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share news, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 400,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.40, for a total transaction of $4,560,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 12,278,992 shares in the company, valued at $139,980,508.80. The trade was a 3.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 58,336 shares of the business'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 $766,535.04. Following the sale, the insider owned 2,607,472 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,262,182.08. This represents a 2.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,220,584 shares of company stock worth $24,613,268. Insiders own 4.80% of the company's stock.

About Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share

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.

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