Clearbridge Investments LLC Purchases Shares of 248,964 Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Clearbridge Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 248,964 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,949,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC now owns 354,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,784,000 after purchasing an additional 13,136 shares during the period. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $815,000. Rathbones Group PLC raised its stake in Verona Pharma by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 15,976 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,000 after buying an additional 6,392 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake in Verona Pharma by 49.3% during the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,493,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,645,000 after buying an additional 822,832 shares during the period. Finally, Eventide Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $13,855,000. Institutional investors own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on VRNA shares. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Verona Pharma from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $33.00 price target on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Finally, HC Wainwright lowered their price objective on Verona Pharma from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.20.

Verona Pharma Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of Verona Pharma stock opened at $12.04 on Friday. Verona Pharma plc has a 52 week low of $11.83 and a 52 week high of $23.07. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $15.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $16.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 18.40 and a quick ratio of 18.40.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported ($0.16) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.23) by $0.07. Equities research analysts predict that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 36,248 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.96, for a total value of $71,046.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,621,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,138,241.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 4.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.