Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Shares Acquired by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 1,379.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,313 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 4,954 shares during the period. Barclays PLC's holdings in Verona Pharma were worth $246,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Verona Pharma by 20.7% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the company's stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. EMC Capital Management increased its holdings in 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. Wrapmanager Inc. acquired a new position in Verona Pharma in the 4th quarter valued at about $207,000. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verona Pharma in the 4th quarter valued at about $225,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Verona Pharma in the 4th quarter valued at about $225,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.88% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verona Pharma news, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 114,984 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.82, for a total value of $1,014,158.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 2,546,472 shares in the company, valued at $22,459,883.04. This represents a 4.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 90,360 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.98, for a total transaction of $811,432.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 14,377,176 shares of the company's stock, valued at $129,107,040.48. This represents a 0.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 365,064 shares of company stock worth $3,208,741 over the last 90 days. 4.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

Shares of VRNA stock opened at $63.36 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $63.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $53.31. The company has a market cap of $5.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -33.00 and a beta of 0.20. Verona Pharma plc has a 12 month low of $11.39 and a 12 month high of $74.18. The company has a current ratio of 13.03, a quick ratio of 12.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations of $41.47 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Roth Capital set a $83.00 target price on Verona Pharma in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target 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. HC Wainwright boosted their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Verona Pharma in a report on Monday, April 21st. They set an "overweight" rating and a $80.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Cowen initiated coverage on Verona Pharma in a report on Monday, April 28th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $81.50.

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.

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