Piper Sandler Increases Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) Price Target to $36.00

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) had its price objective lifted by Piper Sandler from $31.00 to $36.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Piper Sandler’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 119.51% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on VRNA. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $33.00 price objective on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Friday, March 1st. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $32.00 price objective on shares of Verona Pharma in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Verona Pharma has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.60.

Verona Pharma Stock Performance

Shares of VRNA opened at $16.40 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $16.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 33.33 and a current ratio of 33.33. The firm has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a P/E ratio of -23.77 and a beta of 0.40. Verona Pharma has a twelve month low of $11.83 and a twelve month high of $23.81.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported ($0.16) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.23) by $0.07. On average, analysts forecast that Verona Pharma will post -1.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verona Pharma

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRNA. Citigroup Inc. acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the first quarter worth $1,841,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the second quarter worth $118,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the second quarter worth $49,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the third quarter worth $165,000. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Verona Pharma during the third quarter worth $438,000. 85.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.