Soleus Capital Management L.P. Cuts Stake in Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM)

Soleus Capital Management L.P. lowered its stake in shares of Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM - Free Report) by 22.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,184,026 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 643,937 shares during the period. Soleus Capital Management L.P. owned about 4.91% of Verastem worth $11,291,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verastem during the fourth quarter worth about $92,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its stake in Verastem by 41.2% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 60,017 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 17,500 shares in the last quarter. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Verastem during the 4th quarter valued at about $61,000. ProShare Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verastem during the 4th quarter valued at about $56,000. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Verastem by 47.2% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 50,633 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $262,000 after acquiring an additional 16,234 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.37% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on VSTM. HC Wainwright increased their price target on Verastem from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Verastem in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $15.00 price target for the company. B. Riley increased their price target on Verastem from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Guggenheim increased their price target on Verastem from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Verastem from $16.00 to $14.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $14.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 58,677 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.13, for a total value of $477,044.01. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 461,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,755,913.66. The trade was a 11.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Daniel Calkins sold 11,143 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.13, for a total transaction of $90,592.59. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 114,055 shares in the company, valued at $927,267.15. This trade represents a 8.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 71,168 shares of company stock valued at $577,292. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Verastem Trading Up 11.1%

NASDAQ:VSTM traded up $0.83 on Friday, hitting $8.31. The stock had a trading volume of 5,298,457 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,155,405. The company has a quick ratio of 3.23, a current ratio of 3.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77. The stock has a market cap of $456.63 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.61 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $6.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.73. Verastem, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2.10 and a 1-year high of $8.45.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.96) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.72) by ($0.24). Equities research analysts expect that Verastem, Inc. will post -3.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.