Jacobson & Schmitt Advisors LLC Takes $2.03 Million Position in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Jacobson & Schmitt Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 43,748 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,032,000. Jacobson & Schmitt Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Verona Pharma as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Verona Pharma by 25.4% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 20.7% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the period. EMC Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the third quarter valued at approximately $169,000. Finally, Claro Advisors LLC bought a new position in Verona Pharma in the third quarter worth approximately $209,000. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Verona Pharma from $64.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. 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. Roth Capital raised shares of Verona Pharma to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $57.00 target price (up previously from $44.00) on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on shares of Verona Pharma from $44.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.14.

Verona Pharma Stock Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ:VRNA opened at $63.98 on Thursday. 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 12 month low of $11.39 and a 12 month high of $65.50. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.77.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO David Zaccardelli sold 162,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.01, for a total transaction of $815,628.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 14,204,752 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $71,165,807.52. This trade represents a 1.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Kathleen A. Rickard sold 240,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.90, for a total transaction of $1,176,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,671,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,090,252. The trade was a 8.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 952,488 shares of company stock worth $4,743,881 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

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.