AlphaCentric Advisors LLC Sells 33,789 Shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

AlphaCentric Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) by 67.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 16,211 shares of the company’s stock after selling 33,789 shares during the period. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verona Pharma were worth $753,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Maverick Capital Ltd. lifted its holdings in Verona Pharma by 36.3% in the third quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 4,215,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $121,294,000 after buying an additional 1,123,166 shares during the period. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. raised 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 acquiring an additional 69,601 shares during the last quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 359.6% in the 3rd 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 period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,889,542 shares of the company’s stock valued at $87,750,000 after purchasing an additional 148,656 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 19.6% in the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 240,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider now owns 2,671,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,090,252. The trade was a 8.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Mark W. Hahn sold 98,704 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.01, for a total transaction of $494,507.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,177,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $71,028,252.96. This trade represents a 0.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 952,488 shares of company stock valued at $4,743,881. Company insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

Verona Pharma Trading Up 4.1 %

Verona Pharma stock opened at $64.21 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $50.15 and a 200-day moving average of $38.07. The company has a current ratio of 13.03, a quick ratio of 12.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Verona Pharma plc has a twelve month low of $11.39 and a twelve month high of $65.50.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRNA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on Verona Pharma from $44.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $57.00 price target (up from $44.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Verona Pharma from $64.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Roth Mkm started coverage on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Friday, January 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $68.00 target price for the company. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target (up from $42.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $57.14.

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.