Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Given Buy Rating at HC Wainwright

Key Points

• HC Wainwright reaffirmed a Buy rating on Verastem and set an $18 price target, implying 125% upside from the stock’s previous close.
• Verastem shares rose 3.9% to $8.00, while analyst sentiment remained favorable: nine analysts rate the stock Buy, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target of $13.83.
• The company reported better-than-expected quarterly results, including an EPS loss of $0.35 versus an expected $0.43 loss and revenue of $40.08 million versus a $22.88 million estimate; CEO Dan Paterson subsequently sold 44,121 shares under a pre-arranged trading plan.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at HC Wainwright in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. They presently have a $18.00 target price on the biopharmaceutical company's stock. HC Wainwright's price target points to a potential upside of 125.00% from the stock's previous close.

VSTM has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Verastem in a report on Monday, September 28th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Verastem in a report on Thursday, September 17th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Verastem from $15.00 to $8.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Verastem from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a report on Friday, September 4th. Finally, Guggenheim set a $12.00 price objective on shares of Verastem and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $13.83.

Verastem Trading Up 3.9%

Shares of VSTM traded up $0.30 during trading on Monday, reaching $8.00. 2,216,363 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,242,097. Verastem has a twelve month low of $3.43 and a twelve month high of $10.82. The stock has a market cap of $724.48 million, a PE ratio of -3.01 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $7.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.76. The company has a quick ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.35) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.43) by $0.08. Verastem had a negative net margin of 231.59% and a negative return on equity of 467.49%. The business had revenue of $40.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.88 million. On average, analysts anticipate that Verastem will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Verastem

In related news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 44,121 shares of Verastem stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.00, for a total value of $352,968.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 652,712 shares in the company, valued at $5,221,696. The trade was a 6.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 48,044 shares of company stock valued at $381,484 in the last ninety days. 1.94% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VSTM. Opaleye Management Inc. purchased a new position in Verastem in the second quarter worth approximately $6,876,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Verastem in the second quarter worth approximately $706,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Verastem by 157.2% in the second quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 569,195 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,174,000 after acquiring an additional 347,872 shares during the last quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Verastem by 715.1% in the first quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP now owns 123,400 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $654,000 after acquiring an additional 108,260 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in Verastem by 31.6% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 416,985 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,210,000 after acquiring an additional 100,123 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.37% of the company's stock.

Verastem Company Profile

Verastem Oncology NASDAQ: VSTM is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing targeted therapies for cancers driven by abnormalities in the RAS/MAPK signaling pathway. The company's research is aimed at addressing cancers with limited treatment options, including ovarian cancer and other solid tumors.

Verastem's lead product, avutometinib, is a treatment targeting the RAF/MEK signaling pathway and is marketed in the United States under the brand name Avmapki for certain patients with recurrent low-grade serous ovarian cancer.