Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Analysts

Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) has received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the eight research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $13.38.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Verastem from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. HC Wainwright increased their price target on shares of Verastem from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Verastem from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Verastem from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, April 18th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded Verastem from an “outperform” rating to a “moderate buy” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $16.00 to $12.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 25th.

Insider Activity at Verastem

In other Verastem news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 58,677 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.13, for a total transaction of $477,044.01. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 461,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,755,913.66. This represents a 11.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Daniel Calkins sold 11,143 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.13, for a total value of $90,592.59. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 114,055 shares in the company, valued at $927,267.15. This trade represents a 8.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 93,796 shares of company stock worth $693,033 in the last three months. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verastem

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in Verastem by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,997 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 1,698 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verastem during the 4th quarter worth about $56,000. Voya Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verastem in the fourth quarter worth approximately $59,000. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verastem in the fourth quarter worth approximately $61,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in Verastem in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $74,000. 88.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verastem Stock Performance

Shares of VSTM stock opened at $4.85 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $6.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.97. The stock has a market cap of $266.51 million, a PE ratio of -1.52 and a beta of 0.71. Verastem has a 1 year low of $2.10 and a 1 year high of $9.10.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.96) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.72) by ($0.24). As a group, equities research analysts predict that Verastem will post -3.02 earnings per share for the current year.

About Verastem

Verastem, Inc, a development-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing drugs for the treatment of cancer in the United States. Its product candidates are Avutometinib, an orally available small molecule RAF/MEK clamp that inhibits the ras sarcoma RAF/MEK, ERK mitogen activated pathway kinase pathway which is involved in cell proliferation, migration, transformation, and survival of tumor cells; and Defactinib, an oral small molecule inhibitor of FAK and proline-rich tyrosine kinase for various solid tumors.