Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at B. Riley

Key Points

• B. Riley has upgraded Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) to a strong-buy rating, indicating increased confidence in the company's future performance.
• Verastem's stock has seen a 0.9% decline and is currently priced at $8.90, with a market cap of $547.75 million and an average rating of "Buy" from analysts.
• The company reported earnings of ($0.39) EPS for the last quarter, which was better than analysts' expectations of ($0.64), although their revenue fell short of estimates.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) was upgraded by B. Riley to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, August 25th,Zacks.com reports.

VSTM has been the topic of several other research reports. HC Wainwright boosted their price target on Verastem from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Zacks Research raised Verastem to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Wall Street Zen raised Verastem from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Verastem from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verastem presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $13.29.

Verastem Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:VSTM traded up $0.02 during trading on Monday, hitting $9.25. 1,456,428 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,939,816. The stock has a market cap of $569.25 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.82 and a beta of 0.92. Verastem has a fifty-two week low of $2.34 and a fifty-two week high of $9.43. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $6.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $6.32. The company has a current ratio of 3.46, a quick ratio of 3.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.39) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.64) by $0.25. The company had revenue of $2.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.01 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Verastem will post -3.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verastem

In related news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 17,808 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.13, for a total transaction of $91,355.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 443,839 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,276,894.07. The trade was a 3.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 24,488 shares of company stock worth $127,149. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in shares of Verastem by 51.5% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,997 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,698 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Verastem in the 4th quarter valued at $56,000. Voya Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Verastem in the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Verastem in the 2nd quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Verastem in the 4th quarter valued at $61,000. 88.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verastem Company Profile

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.