Jennison Associates LLC Acquires 142,819 Shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA)

Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) by 9.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,585,385 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 142,819 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC owned about 1.98% of Verona Pharma worth $31,517,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of VRNA. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Verona Pharma by 166.8% during the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 55,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $908,000 after acquiring an additional 34,811 shares during the period. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the 3rd quarter valued at $422,000. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC now owns 354,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,784,000 after buying an additional 13,136 shares in the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verona Pharma during the 3rd quarter valued at $815,000. Finally, Rathbones Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of Verona Pharma by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 15,976 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after buying an additional 6,392 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Verona Pharma Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of VRNA stock opened at $15.24 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a P/E ratio of -22.09 and a beta of 0.40. Verona Pharma plc has a 52 week low of $11.83 and a 52 week high of $23.81. The company has a quick ratio of 33.33, a current ratio of 33.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $16.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.10.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported ($0.16) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.23) by $0.07. Analysts predict that Verona Pharma plc will post -1.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Verona Pharma from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 target price on shares of Verona Pharma in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.60.

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.