Cantor Fitzgerald Initiates Coverage on Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Research analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm set an “overweight” rating and a $80.00 price target on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald’s price objective points to a potential upside of 35.78% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $44.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on Verona Pharma from $60.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Roth Mkm began coverage on Verona Pharma in a research note on Friday, January 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Verona Pharma from $74.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $57.00 price objective (up previously from $44.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.43.

Verona Pharma Price Performance

VRNA opened at $58.92 on Monday. 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 has a twelve month low of $11.39 and a twelve month high of $70.40. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $49.72. The firm has a market cap of $4.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -30.69 and a beta of 0.16.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 79,264 shares of Verona Pharma stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.35, for a total value of $661,854.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,608,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,784,949.60. The trade was a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 4.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verona Pharma

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $72,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB acquired a new stake in Verona Pharma during the 1st quarter worth $100,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

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.