135,452 Shares in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Acquired by Springhill Fund Asset Management HK Co Ltd

Springhill Fund Asset Management HK Co Ltd bought a new position in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 135,452 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,290,000. Verona Pharma comprises approximately 10.2% of Springhill Fund Asset Management HK Co Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of VRNA. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. EMC Capital Management grew its holdings in Verona Pharma by 3,400.0% during the fourth quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 3,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 3,400 shares during the last quarter. Wrapmanager Inc. bought a new position in shares of Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the third quarter worth $219,000. Finally, Transcend Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 4th quarter worth $225,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRNA opened at $53.90 on Friday. Verona Pharma plc has a one year low of $11.39 and a one year high of $70.40. The company has a current ratio of 13.03, a quick ratio of 12.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $47.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -28.07 and a beta of 0.16.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on VRNA. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $74.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. HC Wainwright boosted their price objective on Verona Pharma from $60.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $57.00 target price (up previously from $44.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Roth Mkm assumed coverage on Verona Pharma in a report on Friday, January 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price target for the company. Finally, Roth Capital set a $83.00 price objective on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Six research 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 currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.14.

Insider Activity

In other Verona Pharma news, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 79,264 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.35, for a total transaction of $661,854.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 2,608,976 shares in the company, valued at $21,784,949.60. This trade represents a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 4.80% 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.