Walleye Capital LLC Makes New Investment in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Walleye Capital LLC bought a new stake in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 64,605 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,859,000. Walleye Capital LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Verona Pharma as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. First Turn Management LLC bought a new position in Verona Pharma during the third quarter valued at $16,483,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the 2nd quarter worth $859,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma in the 3rd quarter worth about $465,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in Verona Pharma in the 3rd quarter valued at about $849,000. Finally, Rosalind Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Verona Pharma by 10.0% during the third quarter. Rosalind Advisors Inc. now owns 275,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,912,000 after purchasing an additional 25,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.88% of the company's stock.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

Shares of Verona Pharma stock traded up $0.17 during trading on Thursday, hitting $40.02. The stock had a trading volume of 748,865 shares, compared to its average volume of 936,909. Verona Pharma plc has a 12 month low of $11.39 and a 12 month high of $40.76. The business's 50-day moving average is $35.26 and its 200 day moving average is $25.89. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.44) by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $5.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.31 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.18) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verona Pharma

In other Verona Pharma news, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 249,728 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $1,093,808.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,089,960 shares in the company, valued at $61,714,024.80. This trade represents a 1.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 245,784 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $1,076,533.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 15,004,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,721,549.60. The trade was a 1.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,622,112 shares of company stock worth $7,383,768 over the last three months. 4.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on VRNA. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. HC Wainwright lifted their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Verona Pharma from $50.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $43.83.

Verona Pharma Profile

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.