Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA) Reaches New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• The stock price of Verona Pharma PLC reached a new 52-week high of $105.76, following trading volume of over 100,000 shares.
• A majority of analysts have downgraded the stock's rating to "hold", with price targets now averaging $109.00 after recent adjustments.
• The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the last quarter, significantly beating analyst expectations of a -$0.01 estimate.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $105.63 and last traded at $105.76, with a volume of 100535 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $105.27.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on VRNA. Roth Capital lowered Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. HC Wainwright reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $107.00 target price (up from $90.00) on shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share in a report on Monday, July 14th. Piper Sandler downgraded Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Truist Financial downgraded Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $109.00.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share Trading Up 0.4%

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $99.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $77.59. The company has a current ratio of 10.71, a quick ratio of 10.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -106.80 and a beta of 0.12.

Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.01) by $0.14. Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share had a negative return on equity of 21.12% and a negative net margin of 36.62%. The firm had revenue of $103.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $90.41 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share

In other Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share news, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 400,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.40, for a total value of $4,560,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 13,190,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at $150,367,915.20. This trade represents a 2.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 58,336 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.14, for a total value of $766,535.04. Following the sale, the insider owned 2,607,472 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,262,182.08. The trade was a 2.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,220,584 shares of company stock worth $24,613,268 over the last ninety days. 4.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the second quarter worth about $3,378,000. FORA Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share by 168.9% during the second quarter. FORA Capital LLC now owns 13,732 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,299,000 after purchasing an additional 8,625 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,054,000. Keel Point LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the second quarter worth approximately $207,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verona Pharma PLC American Depositary Share during the second quarter worth approximately $373,000. 85.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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