David Zaccardelli, the President and CEO of Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA), has recently sold a substantial number of shares in the company. The sale comes as the stock trades near its 52-week high of $40.76, having delivered an impressive 233% return over the past six months, according to InvestingPro data. According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Zaccardelli sold a total of 870,672 ordinary shares over three days, from December 4 to December 6, 2024. The shares were sold at prices ranging from $5.0018 to $5.0086 per share, amounting to a total sale value of approximately $4.36 million.
Following these transactions, Zaccardelli retains ownership of 14,204,752 ordinary shares. The sales were executed under a pre-established Rule 10b5-1 trading plan, which was adopted on March 8, 2024. This plan allows insiders of publicly traded corporations to set up a trading plan for selling stocks they own.
In other recent news, Verona Pharma has been the subject of significant financial developments. The company's third-quarter financial results revealed a revenue of $5.6 million, primarily generated from sales of Ohtuvayre, its sole marketed product approved for treating chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This figure exceeded the highest Wall Street estimate of $3.5 million. Following these results, H.C. Wainwright maintained a Buy rating on Verona Pharma shares and raised the price target to $42.00, an increase from the previous target of $36.00.
The company also reported a net loss of $43 million for the third quarter. Despite this, Verona Pharma highlighted the successful launch of Ohtuvayre in the U.S, with net product sales reaching $5.6 million within the first seven weeks post-launch. The company's balance sheet remains robust, with $336 million in cash and equivalents.
In response to these developments, H.C. Wainwright has revised its 2024 revenue forecast for Verona to $22.5 million, up from the earlier projection of $12.5 million. The firm's revenue forecast for the full year 2025 has also been revised upwards to $126.2 million from the previous estimate of $117.3 million. Verona Pharma has been assigned a unique J-code for Ohtuvayre, J7601, which is expected to come into effect in January 2025, aiding in the market uptake of the drug.
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