Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Shares Up 4.9%

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded up 4.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $17.15 and last traded at $17.02. 285,724 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 43% from the average session volume of 502,863 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.23.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Friday, March 1st. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $32.00 target price on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Monday, March 4th.

Verona Pharma Stock Up 1.9 %

The company has a 50-day moving average of $16.85 and a 200-day moving average of $16.11. The company has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -23.97 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 33.33, a quick ratio of 33.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported ($0.16) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.23) by $0.07. On average, equities analysts predict that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Verona Pharma

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Verona Pharma by 57.8% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 40,067 shares of the company's stock worth $797,000 after acquiring an additional 14,668 shares during the period. Eventide Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Verona Pharma by 62.1% during the fourth quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC now owns 1,377,781 shares of the company's stock worth $27,390,000 after acquiring an additional 527,781 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Verona Pharma by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 80,514 shares of the company's stock worth $1,600,000 after acquiring an additional 12,664 shares during the period. Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC grew its holdings in Verona Pharma by 20.8% during the fourth quarter. Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC now owns 504,742 shares of the company's stock worth $10,034,000 after acquiring an additional 86,809 shares during the period. Finally, Superstring Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Verona Pharma during the fourth quarter worth about $2,466,000. 85.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Verona Pharma

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.