Truist Financial Raises Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Price Target to $44.00

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) had its target price lifted by Truist Financial from $38.00 to $44.00 in a report issued on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on VRNA. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. HC Wainwright reiterated a buy rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Verona Pharma in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an overweight rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Buy and an average price target of $39.33.

Verona Pharma Price Performance

NASDAQ:VRNA opened at $32.68 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $27.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.09. Verona Pharma has a 52-week low of $11.39 and a 52-week high of $32.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 8.61 and a current ratio of 8.61. The company has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.21 and a beta of 0.44.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.88) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.53). During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.11) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Verona Pharma will post -2.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Verona Pharma

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Maverick Capital Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 74.2% during the second quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 3,092,807 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,722,000 after buying an additional 1,316,998 shares in the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. acquired a new stake in Verona Pharma in the 2nd quarter worth about $11,177,000. NEA Management Company LLC raised its stake in Verona Pharma by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. NEA Management Company LLC now owns 5,584,753 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,756,000 after purchasing an additional 476,190 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Verona Pharma by 56.6% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 878,043 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,697,000 after purchasing an additional 317,184 shares during the period. Finally, Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. now owns 3,314,349 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,925,000 after purchasing an additional 300,000 shares in the last quarter. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.