Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $68.83, but opened at $74.18. Verona Pharma shares last traded at $71.90, with a volume of 625,861 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRNA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Roth Capital set a $83.00 price target on Verona Pharma in a research note on Friday, February 28th. HC Wainwright boosted their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $44.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Verona Pharma in a research note on Monday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $100.00 target price for the company. Finally, Cowen began coverage on Verona Pharma in a research note on Monday. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $81.50.

Verona Pharma Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $62.89 and a 200-day moving average of $51.63. 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 $5.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -37.56 and a beta of 0.16.

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 the consensus estimate of ($0.22) by $0.49. The business had revenue of $98.65 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.47 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Andrew Fisher sold 26,072 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.98, for a total value of $234,126.56. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 359,993 shares in the company, valued at $3,232,737.14. This represents a 6.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 79,264 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 2,608,976 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,784,949.60. The trade was a 2.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 250,080 shares of company stock worth $2,194,582. 4.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RTW Investments LP bought a new stake in Verona Pharma during the fourth quarter valued at $84,568,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 61.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,025,241 shares of the company's stock worth $140,492,000 after buying an additional 1,146,609 shares during the period. Darwin Global Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the 4th quarter valued at $37,637,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter worth $33,019,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 59.9% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,667,165 shares of the company's stock valued at $77,466,000 after purchasing an additional 624,370 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.88% of the company's stock.

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.