Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Reaches New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $40.76 and last traded at $39.96, with a volume of 190504 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $39.90.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. HC Wainwright lifted their price target on Verona Pharma from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a 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 stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.83.

Verona Pharma Trading Down 0.1 %

The business’s 50-day moving average is $34.46 and its 200 day moving average is $25.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.19 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.78 and a beta of 0.42. 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 (NASDAQ:VRNA) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $5.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.18) earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.11 EPS for the current fiscal 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, Director David R. Ebsworth bought 39,360 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $4.80 per share, with a total value of $188,928.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 920,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,416,014.40. The trade was a 4.47 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,383,544 shares of company stock valued at $6,188,952 over the last quarter. 4.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verona Pharma

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Verona Pharma in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $16,103,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in Verona Pharma in the 3rd quarter valued at $219,000. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. now owns 3,383,950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,356,000 after purchasing an additional 69,601 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 3rd quarter worth $327,000. Finally, Northeast Financial Consultants Inc purchased a new position in shares of Verona Pharma in the 3rd quarter worth about $250,000. Institutional investors own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

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.