Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Boosts Stock Position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 366.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,486 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 9,021 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share were worth $720,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRNA. RTW Investments LP bought a new stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the fourth quarter valued at $84,568,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 61.0% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,025,241 shares of the company's stock worth $140,492,000 after purchasing an additional 1,146,609 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Global Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the fourth quarter worth about $37,637,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the fourth quarter worth about $33,019,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 59.9% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,667,165 shares of the company's stock worth $77,466,000 after purchasing an additional 624,370 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.88% of the company's stock.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share Trading Down 4.8%

NASDAQ:VRNA traded down $4.34 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $86.86. 1,360,244 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,253,732. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share has a 12-month low of $16.61 and a 12-month high of $99.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -43.43 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 8.86 and a quick ratio of 8.73. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $81.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.44.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.22) by $0.49. The business had revenue of $98.65 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $41.47 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRNA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $116.00 price target (up previously from $92.00) on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. HC Wainwright lifted their price target on Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Wolfe Research started coverage on Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. They set an "outperform" rating and a $170.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen started coverage on Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in a research note on Monday, April 28th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $100.00 target price for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $107.36.

Insider Transactions at Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share

In other news, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 400,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.40, for a total value of $4,560,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 12,278,992 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $139,980,508.80. This represents a 3.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Andrew Fisher sold 80,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.53, for a total value of $922,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 359,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,150,788.47. This represents a 18.18% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,965,800 shares of company stock worth $20,056,881 over the last 90 days. 4.80% of the stock is currently 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.