Matisse Capital Has $669,000 Stock Holdings in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Matisse Capital lessened its position in shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 38.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,400 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,000 shares during the period. Matisse Capital's holdings in Verona Pharma were worth $669,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VRNA. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the second quarter worth $449,000. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of Verona Pharma in the 2nd quarter valued at about $195,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 4.7% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 527,640 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,630,000 after acquiring an additional 23,567 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new position in Verona Pharma in the second quarter valued at approximately $859,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 70.6% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.88% of the company's stock.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRNA traded down $0.99 on Friday, reaching $60.26. The stock had a trading volume of 1,108,242 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,585,982. 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 cap of $4.85 billion, a P/E ratio of -31.39 and a beta of 0.41. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $47.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.34. Verona Pharma plc has a 1-year low of $11.39 and a 1-year high of $62.00.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $5.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.31 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.18) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.95 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Verona Pharma

In other news, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 240,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.90, for a total value of $1,176,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,671,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,090,252. The trade was a 8.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 23,240 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.00, for a total transaction of $116,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 15,177,512 shares in the company, valued at $75,887,560. This represents a 0.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 954,888 shares of company stock worth $4,755,881. Company insiders own 4.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRNA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Roth Capital raised shares of Verona Pharma to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $64.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $57.00 price target (up previously from $44.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Roth Mkm started coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Friday, January 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $68.00 price objective for the company. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verona Pharma currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $53.14.

Verona Pharma Company 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.