Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Shares Climb 4.3% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Verastem shares rose 4.3% to $8.085 on Wednesday, although trading volume was 86% below the stock’s average daily volume.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive: nine analysts rate the stock a Buy, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $13.83. Recent coverage included an Outperform rating from Wolfe Research, while Jefferies cut its target to $8 from $15 but retained a Buy rating.
• Verastem beat quarterly expectations, reporting a loss of $0.35 per share versus the anticipated $0.43 loss and revenue of $40.08 million versus the $22.88 million forecast. Institutional investors own 88.37% of the company, while the CEO recently sold 44,121 shares under a pre-arranged trading plan.

Shares of Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) rose 4.3% on Wednesday. The company traded as high as $8.20 and last traded at $8.0850. Approximately 314,213 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 2,231,941 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.75.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Verastem in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Verastem from $15.00 to $8.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Verastem from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Verastem in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Verastem from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, September 27th. Nine equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verastem currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $13.83.

Verastem Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $730.84 million, a P/E ratio of -3.03 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $7.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.79. The company has a quick ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $40.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.88 million. Verastem had a negative return on equity of 467.49% and a negative net margin of 231.59%. Equities analysts expect that Verastem, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Verastem

In other Verastem news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 44,121 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 1st. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $5,221,696. The trade was a 6.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 48,044 shares of company stock worth $381,484. Insiders own 1.94% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verastem

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Opaleye Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Verastem during the 2nd quarter worth $6,876,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Verastem in the 2nd quarter worth $706,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Verastem by 157.2% during the second quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 569,195 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,174,000 after buying an additional 347,872 shares during the last quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Verastem by 715.1% during the first quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP now owns 123,400 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $654,000 after buying an additional 108,260 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Verastem by 31.6% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 416,985 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,210,000 after purchasing an additional 100,123 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.37% of the company's stock.

About Verastem

Verastem Oncology NASDAQ: VSTM 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 lead product, avutometinib, is a treatment targeting the RAF/MEK signaling pathway and is marketed in the United States under the brand name Avmapki for certain patients with recurrent low-grade serous ovarian cancer.

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