Insider Selling: Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA) Director Sells 3,608 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Director Mahendra Shah of Verona Pharma PLC sold 3,608 shares at an average price of $13.14, resulting in a total transaction value of $47,409.12 and a 3.72% decrease in his holdings.
• Wall Street analysts have recently downgraded Verona Pharma's stock ratings, with Roth Capital and Piper Sandler both moving their ratings from "strong-buy" to "hold."
• The company has a market cap of $8.97 billion and its stock's 12-month price range is between $19.45 and $105.50.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) Director Mahendra Shah sold 3,608 shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share 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 $47,409.12. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 93,472 shares in the company, valued at $1,228,222.08. This trade represents a 3.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share Trading Down 0.1%

NASDAQ:VRNA traded down $0.12 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $105.28. The company had a trading volume of 610,545 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,298,595. The company has a market capitalization of $8.96 billion, a PE ratio of -106.34 and a beta of 0.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $97.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.53. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share has a 52 week low of $21.56 and a 52 week high of $105.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 10.71 and a quick ratio of 8.73.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.14. The business had revenue of $103.14 million for 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share will post -1.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRNA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research cut shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $138.00 to $107.00 in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Truist Financial cut shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, 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. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $109.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 13.3% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,374 shares of the company's stock valued at $603,000 after buying an additional 747 shares during the period. Calamos Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the second quarter valued at $4,153,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 18.7% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 68,430 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,472,000 after buying an additional 10,757 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the second quarter valued at $148,000. Finally, Tyro Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the second quarter valued at $20,308,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.88% of the company's stock.

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.