PFG Investments LLC Trims Position in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

PFG Investments LLC cut its position in shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 19.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 29,700 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,100 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC's holdings in Verona Pharma were worth $1,379,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of VRNA. Shilanski & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter valued at about $305,000. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,166 shares of the company's stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 21.2% in the 4th quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 25,766 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,165,000 after purchasing an additional 4,512 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 24.3% during the 4th quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 193,707 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,996,000 after purchasing an additional 37,872 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 20.7% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the company's stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. 85.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verona Pharma Stock Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ:VRNA traded up $0.14 on Friday, hitting $57.38. The stock had a trading volume of 846,968 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,569,320. The stock has a market cap of $4.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -29.89 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 12.88 and a current ratio of 13.03. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $45.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $35.04. Verona Pharma plc has a 1 year low of $11.39 and a 1 year high of $58.42.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $2.31 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.18) EPS. Analysts predict that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on VRNA. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target 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 raised their target price on Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Roth Mkm started coverage on Verona Pharma in a research report on Friday, January 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $68.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price objective (up from $42.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $57.00 target price (up from $44.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verona Pharma presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $53.14.

Insider Activity at Verona Pharma

In related news, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 98,704 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.01, for a total transaction of $494,507.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,177,296 shares of the company's stock, valued at $71,028,252.96. This trade represents a 0.69 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 94,144 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.39, for a total value of $413,292.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 15,204,752 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $66,748,861.28. This represents a 0.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,129,816 shares of company stock valued at $5,523,815. Insiders own 4.80% of the company's stock.

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.