Verrica Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRCA) Rating Lowered to Strong Sell at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Verrica Pharmaceuticals from “sell” to “strong sell.” Despite mixed analyst views, the stock has a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $14.50.
• VRCA shares opened at $4.97, with a market capitalization of approximately $85.4 million and a 12-month trading range of $3.28 to $9.82.
• Verrica reported a quarterly loss of $0.41 per share, better than the expected $0.59 loss, while revenue of $5.02 million exceeded estimates. Institutional investors own about 42.45% of the company.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRCA - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Zacks Research upgraded Verrica Pharmaceuticals from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, HC Wainwright began coverage on shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $12.00 target price for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verrica Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $14.50.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of VRCA stock opened at $4.97 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Verrica Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $3.28 and a 12 month high of $9.82. The stock has a market cap of $85.38 million, a P/E ratio of -2.98 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.96.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRCA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 12th. The company reported ($0.41) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.59) by $0.18. Verrica Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 102.84% and a negative return on equity of 407.11%. The business had revenue of $5.02 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.51 million. On average, research analysts expect that Verrica Pharmaceuticals will post -2.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verrica Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Affinity Asset Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Verrica Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at about $5,878,000. Armistice Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals by 75.1% in the fourth quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 1,118,925 shares of the company's stock worth $9,298,000 after acquiring an additional 479,732 shares during the period. Velan Capital Investment Management LP bought a new position in shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $3,919,000. Boothbay Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $1,210,000. Finally, Kalehua Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $1,959,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.45% of the company's stock.

About Verrica Pharmaceuticals

Verrica Pharmaceuticals Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of topical therapies for dermatological conditions. Its lead investigational product, VP-102, is a standardized formulation of cantharidin in a pre-measured applicator designed to treat molluscum contagiosum and common warts. Verrica's approach emphasizes consistency of dosing and patient convenience, aiming to improve upon off‐label use of existing treatments.

Beyond VP-102, Verrica is advancing VP-103, a next‐generation topical candidate intended to optimize tolerability while maintaining efficacy against viral skin lesions.

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