Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) CEO Sells $352,968.00 in Stock

Key Points

• CEO Dan Paterson sold 44,121 Verastem shares at an average price of $8.00, generating $352,968. The transaction, conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, reduced his ownership by 6.33% to 652,712 shares.
• Verastem shares traded at $7.70, while the company reported quarterly revenue of $40.08 million and an adjusted loss of $0.35 per share, beating analyst expectations on both measures.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $13.83; institutional investors own 88.37% of the company.

Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 652,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,221,696. This represents a 6.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Dan Paterson also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, August 3rd, Dan Paterson sold 1,302 shares of Verastem stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.81, for a total transaction of $7,564.62.

Verastem Stock Performance

Shares of VSTM traded down $0.20 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $7.70. The stock had a trading volume of 4,070,379 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,242,226. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 2.22 and a current ratio of 2.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $7.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.75. Verastem, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $3.43 and a fifty-two week high of $10.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $697.31 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.89 and a beta of 0.38.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.43) by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $40.08 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.88 million. Verastem had a negative net margin of 231.59% and a negative return on equity of 467.49%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Verastem, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Verastem

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Verastem by 157.2% in the 2nd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 569,195 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,174,000 after buying an additional 347,872 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Verastem in the 2nd quarter worth about $706,000. AIGH Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Verastem during the 1st quarter worth approximately $10,600,000. Opaleye Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Verastem during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,876,000. Finally, Exome Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verastem by 58.5% during the first quarter. Exome Asset Management LLC now owns 636,700 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,375,000 after acquiring an additional 234,957 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.37% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VSTM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wolfe Research began coverage on Verastem in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $18.00 price target on shares of Verastem in a report on Friday, September 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $14.00 price target on Verastem and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Guggenheim set a $12.00 price objective on Verastem and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Verastem from $15.00 to $8.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $13.83.

About Verastem

Verastem Oncology 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 principal products include avutometinib, a RAF/MEK pathway inhibitor, and defactinib, a focal adhesion kinase (FAK) inhibitor. The company has studied these therapies both individually and in combination, with the goal of improving cancer-cell response and overcoming treatment resistance.

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