Two Sigma Investments LP Acquires 82,166 Shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Two Sigma Investments LP increased its stake in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 117.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 152,104 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 82,166 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP owned about 0.19% of Verona Pharma worth $7,064,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. EMC Capital Management boosted its position in Verona Pharma by 3,400.0% during the fourth quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 3,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $163,000 after acquiring an additional 3,400 shares during the last quarter. Wrapmanager Inc. acquired a new stake in Verona Pharma during the fourth quarter worth approximately $207,000. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter worth approximately $225,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter worth approximately $225,000. Finally, Choreo LLC acquired a new position in Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $230,000. 85.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on VRNA shares. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $44.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Monday, April 28th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $100.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $93.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Monday, April 21st. They set an "overweight" rating and a $80.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Roth Capital set a $83.00 target price on Verona Pharma in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $81.50.

Verona Pharma Price Performance

NASDAQ VRNA traded up $2.38 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $79.87. The company had a trading volume of 1,143,647 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,303,766. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 12.88 and a current ratio of 13.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -41.62 and a beta of 0.20. Verona Pharma plc has a 52 week low of $11.39 and a 52 week high of $80.79. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $65.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $56.58.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, 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 transaction of $178,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 74,440 shares in the company, valued at approximately $664,004.80. This trade represents a 21.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 32,432 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.53, for a total transaction of $309,076.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,046,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $124,333,716.80. This trade represents a 0.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,165,064 shares of company stock worth $10,676,335. 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.