Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts hold a “Moderate Buy” consensus on Verastem, with seven buy ratings, one strong buy, one hold and one sell. The average 12-month price target is $13.83, well above the reported $7.39 opening price.
• Verastem reported a quarterly loss of $0.35 per share, beating the $0.43-loss consensus estimate, while revenue of $40.08 million exceeded analysts’ $22.88 million forecast. Analysts expect a full-year loss of $1.56 per share.
• Institutional investors own 88.37% of the stock, with several major funds recently increasing or initiating positions. Meanwhile, CEO Dan Paterson sold 20,871 shares under a pre-arranged trading plan, and insiders have sold 26,262 shares over the past three months.

Shares of Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the ten analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation, seven have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $13.8333.

A number of brokerages recently commented on VSTM. Alliance Global Partners reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Verastem in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Mizuho set a $13.00 price target on Verastem and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $18.00 price objective on shares of Verastem in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $14.00 price objective on Verastem and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Verastem from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "sell (e+)" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th.

Verastem Trading Up 4.4%

NASDAQ:VSTM opened at $7.39 on Thursday. Verastem has a 12 month low of $3.43 and a 12 month high of $11.24. The company has a current ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $669.24 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.78 and a beta of 0.26. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.42.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.35) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.43) by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $40.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.88 million. Verastem had a negative net margin of 231.59% and a negative return on equity of 467.49%. Analysts expect that Verastem will post -1.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Verastem

In related news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 20,871 shares of Verastem stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.18, for a total value of $87,240.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 591,242 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,471,391.56. This trade represents a 3.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 26,262 shares of company stock valued at $111,897. Company insiders own 1.94% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VSTM. Polar Capital Holdings Plc increased its position in shares of Verastem by 270.7% during the fourth quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc now owns 3,925,126 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $30,302,000 after acquiring an additional 2,866,350 shares in the last quarter. AIGH Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verastem in the 1st quarter worth about $10,600,000. Farallon Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Verastem in the 4th quarter valued at about $15,440,000. SymBiosis Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Verastem in the 4th quarter valued at about $15,440,000. Finally, Armistice Capital LLC boosted its stake in Verastem by 68.7% during the 4th quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 3,536,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $27,298,000 after purchasing an additional 1,440,000 shares during the last quarter. 88.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Verastem

Verastem Oncology, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of small molecule therapies that target cancer stemness and resistance pathways. Established in 2010 and headquartered in Needham, Massachusetts, Verastem Oncology applies a precision-medicine approach to identify key signaling nodes responsible for tumor growth and relapse, with an emphasis on hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. The company’s research platform integrates insights into complex signaling networks to advance novel compounds from early discovery through clinical proof of concept.

The company’s lead marketed product is COPIKTRA (duvelisib), an oral inhibitor of PI3K-delta and PI3K-gamma, which received U.S.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source