Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share $VRNA Position Lifted by Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P.

Key Points

• Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. increased its stake in Verona Pharma PLC by 2.2%, owning approximately 3.46 million shares, which makes it the third largest holding in their portfolio.
• Insider trades revealed that several executives sold shares recently, with CFO Mark W. Hahn selling over 208,000 shares for approximately $2.74 million, indicating a 1.65% decrease in his ownership.
• Analysts have lowered their ratings on Verona Pharma, with Wells Fargo cutting its price target from $138.00 to $107.00, as the stock is rated with an average of 12 Hold ratings and 2 Buy ratings.

Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. grew its holdings in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 2.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,457,850 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 73,900 shares during the quarter. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share comprises approximately 10.0% of Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P.'s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. owned approximately 4.26% of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share worth $219,539,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. RTW Investments LP acquired a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the 4th quarter worth approximately $84,568,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the 1st quarter worth $58,716,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the 4th quarter worth $33,019,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 59.9% during the 4th 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. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in the first quarter valued at $33,150,000. 85.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share

In other Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share news, Director David R. Ebsworth sold 1,904 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.14, for a total transaction of $25,018.56. Following the sale, the director directly owned 880,499 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,569,756.86. The trade was a 0.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 208,912 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 $2,745,103.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 12,464,968 shares in the company, valued at $163,789,679.52. The trade was a 1.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,420,584 shares of company stock worth $17,145,674 in the last three months. Insiders own 4.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRNA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $138.00 to $107.00 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. Truist Financial 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. Cowen cut shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $107.00 price target (down from $140.00) on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $109.00.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share stock opened at $105.91 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.16 billion, a PE ratio of -106.98 and a beta of 0.14. 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 has a 1-year low of $24.50 and a 1-year high of $105.98. The business has a 50-day moving average of $102.43 and a 200-day moving average of $81.07.

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

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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