Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Price Target Raised to $90.00

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) had its target price raised by HC Wainwright from $85.00 to $90.00 in a report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Monday, April 21st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $80.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Monday, April 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. Roth Capital set a $83.00 price objective on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Cowen began coverage on Verona Pharma in a research report on Monday, April 28th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Verona Pharma from $93.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Verona Pharma currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $82.13.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRNA opened at $83.98 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $66.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $57.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 13.03 and a quick ratio of 12.88. Verona Pharma has a 1 year low of $11.79 and a 1 year high of $86.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.81 billion, a PE ratio of -43.74 and a beta of 0.20.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.22) by $0.49. The company had revenue of $98.65 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.47 million. Analysts predict that Verona Pharma will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Verona Pharma

In other news, General Counsel Andrew Fisher sold 26,072 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.98, for a total value of $234,126.56. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 359,993 shares in the company, valued at $3,232,737.14. This represents a 6.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Vikas Sinha sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.92, for a total transaction of $178,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 74,440 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $664,004.80. This trade represents a 21.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,165,064 shares of company stock valued at $10,676,335 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verona Pharma

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Verona Pharma during the first quarter worth approximately $48,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Verona Pharma by 44.2% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in Verona Pharma by 274.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,041,408 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,119,000 after purchasing an additional 763,353 shares during the period. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd bought a new stake in Verona Pharma in the first quarter worth about $2,012,000. Finally, Scientech Research LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the first quarter valued at approximately $809,000. 85.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.