Temasek Holdings Private Ltd Makes New $2.01 Million Investment in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share $VRNA

Key Points

• Temasek Holdings has made a new investment in Verona Pharma PLC, acquiring 31,684 shares valued at approximately $2.01 million.
• Company insiders, including general counsel Andrew Fisher and CEO David Zaccardelli, sold a significant number of shares recently, resulting in an 18.18% and 2.94% decrease in their holdings, respectively.
• Analyst ratings for the stock have been predominantly downgraded, with many shifting from "strong-buy" to "hold," reflecting a cautious outlook on Verona Pharma's future performance.

Temasek Holdings Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 31,684 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,012,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VRNA. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the first quarter worth $34,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the first quarter worth about $58,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the fourth quarter worth about $72,000. Finally, Advisors Preferred LLC grew its stake in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 65.4% in the first quarter. Advisors Preferred LLC now owns 1,599 shares of the company's stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 632 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.88% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share news, Director Michael Austwick sold 11,288 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.14, for a total value of $148,324.32. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 12,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $167,035.68. This represents a 47.03% decrease in their position. The transaction 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 dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.53, for a total transaction of $922,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 359,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,150,788.47. The trade was a 18.18% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 620,584 shares of company stock valued at $8,025,674. Insiders own 4.80% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on VRNA. Piper Sandler cut Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Roth Capital cut Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. TD Cowen lowered shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. HC Wainwright restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $107.00 price objective (up from $90.00) on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $138.00 to $107.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.00.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share Trading Down 0.0%

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share stock traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $106.38. The stock had a trading volume of 686,201 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,178,749. The company has a fifty day moving average of $104.49 and a 200 day moving average of $83.12. The company has a quick ratio of 10.54, a current ratio of 10.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share has a 52-week low of $27.54 and a 52-week high of $106.45. The firm has a market cap of $9.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -107.45 and a beta of 0.14.

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

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.