Renaissance Technologies LLC Purchases Shares of 15,500 Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 15,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $720,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Verona Pharma by 20.7% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the company's stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Verona Pharma by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,166 shares of the company's stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Verona Pharma by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 62,741 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,914,000 after purchasing an additional 660 shares in the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 22,848 shares of the company's stock worth $1,061,000 after acquiring an additional 1,807 shares during the period. Finally, EMC Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 3,400.0% in the 4th quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 3,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 3,400 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.88% of the company's stock.

Verona Pharma Stock Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ:VRNA traded down $0.48 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $72.25. The company's stock had a trading volume of 781,830 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,268,656. The company has a quick ratio of 12.88, a current ratio of 13.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $63.10 and a 200-day moving average of $52.14. Verona Pharma plc has a 1 year low of $11.39 and a 1 year high of $74.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.84 billion, a PE ratio of -37.63 and a beta of 0.20.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on VRNA shares. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Monday, April 21st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $80.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and set a $57.00 price objective (up previously from $44.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Roth Mkm started coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Friday, January 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $68.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Monday, April 28th. They set a "buy" rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. Finally, HC Wainwright upped their price objective on Verona Pharma from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $81.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verona Pharma news, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 79,264 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.35, for a total value of $661,854.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 2,608,976 shares in the company, valued at $21,784,949.60. The trade was a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Vikas Sinha sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.92, for a total value of $178,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 74,440 shares in the company, valued at $664,004.80. This trade represents a 21.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 250,080 shares of company stock valued at $2,194,582 in the last three months. 4.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.