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

Shares of Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of "Buy" from the seven analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $28.79.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $32.00 target price on shares of Verastem in a report on Friday, March 15th. StockNews.com downgraded Verastem from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $17.50 price target on shares of Verastem in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verastem

In other Verastem news, Director Robert E. Gagnon sold 9,204 shares of Verastem stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.95, for a total value of $100,783.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 37,008 shares in the company, valued at $405,237.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 9,817 shares of company stock worth $107,388 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 2.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Verastem

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Eaton Vance Management bought a new stake in Verastem in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Mirabella Financial Services LLP bought a new stake in Verastem in the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in Verastem in the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Virtu Financial LLC lifted its stake in Verastem by 212.0% in the second quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 41,048 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 27,890 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in Verastem in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $55,000. 88.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verastem Stock Performance

VSTM stock traded down $0.65 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $11.33. 84,127 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 147,303. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 5.45 and a quick ratio of 5.45. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $12.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $9.39. Verastem has a one year low of $4.26 and a one year high of $15.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $286.65 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.87 and a beta of 0.48.

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.