Analysts’ Recent Ratings Updates for Verona Pharma (VRNA)

A number of research firms have changed their ratings and price targets for Verona Pharma (NASDAQ: VRNA):

• 1/21/2025 – Verona Pharma had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by analysts at HC Wainwright. They now have a $60.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $42.00.
• 1/10/2025 – Verona Pharma was upgraded by analysts at Roth Capital to a “strong-buy” rating.
• 1/10/2025 – Verona Pharma is now covered by analysts at Roth Mkm. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price target on the stock.
• 1/8/2025 – Verona Pharma had its price target raised by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $64.00 to $74.00. They now have an “overweight” rating on the stock.
• 1/8/2025 – Verona Pharma had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Truist Financial Co.. They now have a $57.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $44.00.

Verona Pharma Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRNA traded up $0.36 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $54.44. 399,764 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,675,984. Verona Pharma plc has a 52-week low of $11.39 and a 52-week high of $55.91. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $43.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.79. The company has a market capitalization of $4.42 billion, a P/E ratio of -28.35 and a beta of 0.40. 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) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.44) by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $5.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.31 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.18) EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 240,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.90, for a total transaction of $1,176,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,671,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,090,252. The trade was a 8.24 % 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, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 46,888 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $205,369.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 15,298,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $67,009,164.48. The trade was a 0.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,225,592 shares of company stock worth $5,943,314 over the last ninety days. 4.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verona Pharma

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRNA. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Verona Pharma by 70.6% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 553 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Verona Pharma by 25.4% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares in the last quarter. EMC Capital Management raised its holdings in Verona Pharma by 3,400.0% in the fourth quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 3,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $163,000 after acquiring an additional 3,400 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Verona Pharma during the third quarter valued at $169,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Verona Pharma during the second quarter valued at $195,000. 85.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.