Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) CEO David Zaccardelli Sells 3,200 Shares

Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) CEO David Zaccardelli sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.00, for a total transaction of $16,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 15,075,424 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $75,377,120. This trade represents a 0.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

David Zaccardelli also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, November 29th, David Zaccardelli sold 98,888 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.01, for a total transaction of $495,428.88.
• On Wednesday, November 27th, David Zaccardelli sold 23,240 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.00, for a total transaction of $116,200.00.
• On Monday, November 11th, David Zaccardelli sold 2,400 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.00, for a total value of $12,000.00.
• On Monday, November 4th, David Zaccardelli sold 94,144 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.39, for a total transaction of $413,292.16.
• On Friday, November 1st, David Zaccardelli sold 46,888 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $205,369.44.
• On Friday, October 25th, David Zaccardelli sold 4,800 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $21,024.00.
• On Wednesday, October 23rd, David Zaccardelli sold 16 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $70.08.
• On Monday, October 21st, David Zaccardelli sold 110,456 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total value of $483,797.28.
• On Friday, October 18th, David Zaccardelli sold 245,784 shares of Verona Pharma stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.38, for a total transaction of $1,076,533.92.

Verona Pharma Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of VRNA stock traded down $0.52 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $39.11. The stock had a trading volume of 621,587 shares, compared to its average volume of 936,193. Verona Pharma plc has a 12-month low of $11.39 and a 12-month high of $40.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 13.03 and a quick ratio of 12.88. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $34.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.37 and a beta of 0.46.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.44) by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $5.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.18) EPS. On average, analysts predict that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on VRNA. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. HC Wainwright boosted their price objective on Verona Pharma from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on Verona Pharma from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $50.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.83.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verona Pharma

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. NEA Management Company LLC lifted its holdings in Verona Pharma by 9.3% during the second quarter. NEA Management Company LLC now owns 5,584,753 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,756,000 after buying an additional 476,190 shares during the period. Maverick Capital Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 36.3% during the 3rd quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 4,215,973 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,294,000 after purchasing an additional 1,123,166 shares during the last quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. boosted its position in Verona Pharma by 2.1% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Verona Pharma by 359.6% in the third quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC now owns 2,425,846 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,792,000 after purchasing an additional 1,898,065 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Verona Pharma by 19.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,878,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,048,000 after purchasing an additional 307,272 shares in the last quarter. 85.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.