Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. Boosts Stock Holdings in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. lifted its stake in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 2.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,383,950 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 69,601 shares during the quarter. Verona Pharma accounts for about 3.9% of Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. owned 4.23% of Verona Pharma worth $97,356,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VRNA. Eventide Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 359.6% in the third quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC now owns 2,425,846 shares of the company's stock worth $69,792,000 after acquiring an additional 1,898,065 shares during the period. Maverick Capital Ltd. grew its position in Verona Pharma by 74.2% during the second quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 3,092,807 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,722,000 after buying an additional 1,316,998 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in Verona Pharma during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,966,000. Candriam S.C.A. bought a new stake in Verona Pharma during the second quarter valued at approximately $11,177,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in Verona Pharma by 54.3% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,740,886 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,085,000 after buying an additional 612,854 shares during the period. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Verona Pharma

In other news, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 249,728 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $1,093,808.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 14,089,960 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $61,714,024.80. This represents a 1.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 162,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.01, for a total transaction of $815,628.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,204,752 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,165,807.52. This represents a 1.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,094,432 shares of company stock valued at $9,748,833 over the last 90 days. 4.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRNA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. HC Wainwright upped their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $50.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verona Pharma currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $43.83.

Verona Pharma Price Performance

Shares of VRNA stock traded down $0.75 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $39.45. The company had a trading volume of 557,060 shares, compared to its average volume of 937,530. Verona Pharma plc has a 52-week low of $11.39 and a 52-week high of $40.97. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $35.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 13.03 and a quick ratio of 12.88. The company has a market capitalization of $3.20 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.55 and a beta of 0.46.

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 (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 the consensus estimate of $2.31 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.18) earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

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.