Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Shares Sold by RA Capital Management L.P.

RA Capital Management L.P. lessened its holdings in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA - Free Report) by 34.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,009,653 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,622,993 shares during the period. Verona Pharma makes up approximately 1.7% of RA Capital Management L.P.'s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position. RA Capital Management L.P. owned 6.27% of Verona Pharma worth $144,128,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. CWM LLC purchased a new position in Verona Pharma in the second quarter valued at $29,000. EMC Capital Management purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma during the second quarter worth approximately $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake 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. grew its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 25.4% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,610 shares of the company's stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legato Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the second quarter valued at about $154,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.88% of the company's stock.

Verona Pharma Stock Up 0.6 %

VRNA traded up $0.22 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $40.07. The company's stock had a trading volume of 827,790 shares, compared to its average volume of 937,462. Verona Pharma plc has a 52-week low of $11.39 and a 52-week high of $40.76. The company has a quick ratio of 12.88, a current ratio of 13.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $35.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $25.89.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.56) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.18) EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 240,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 2,671,480 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,090,252. This trade represents a 8.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 98,704 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.01, for a total value of $494,507.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now 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 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 in the last 90 days. 4.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on VRNA shares. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $50.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Truist Financial lifted 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, HC Wainwright increased their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target 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.