Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) Given Consensus Rating of "Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Consensus rating of "Buy": Ten analysts covering Verastem assigned a consensus Buy rating (1 sell, 1 hold, 5 buy, 3 strong buy) with an average 12‑month price target of $17.40.
• Insider selling occurred on January 12, as CFO Daniel Calkins and CEO Dan Paterson sold a combined 15,360 shares at about $7.16, and insiders sold 16,330 shares worth $116,467 in the last quarter (insiders now own 2.10% of the stock).
• High institutional ownership: Institutional investors own 88.37% of Verastem, with notable position increases from Goldman Sachs (now 756,402 shares, +236.9%) and AQR Capital (62,603 shares, +78.2%).

Shares of Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Buy" from the ten research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation, five have assigned a buy recommendation and three have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $17.40.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Mizuho set a $18.00 target price on shares of Verastem in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Verastem in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $19.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $19.00 price objective on shares of Verastem in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Verastem in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Verastem from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verastem news, CFO Daniel Calkins sold 5,039 shares of Verastem stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.16, for a total transaction of $36,079.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 104,719 shares of the company's stock, valued at $749,788.04. The trade was a 4.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dan Paterson sold 10,321 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.16, for a total value of $73,898.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 400,104 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,864,744.64. This represents a 2.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 16,330 shares of company stock valued at $116,467 in the last quarter. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verastem

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Verastem by 78.2% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 62,603 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $377,000 after acquiring an additional 27,477 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Verastem by 236.9% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 756,402 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $4,561,000 after purchasing an additional 531,873 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verastem by 24.9% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,199,259 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $4,978,000 after purchasing an additional 238,995 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verastem by 35.9% in the 2nd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 27,833 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 7,352 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in shares of Verastem by 19.2% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 59,553 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $247,000 after purchasing an additional 9,594 shares during the period. 88.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verastem Price Performance

Shares of VSTM stock opened at $5.04 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $6.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $7.77. Verastem has a 52-week low of $4.01 and a 52-week high of $11.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 3.07 and a current ratio of 3.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $442.66 million, a P/E ratio of -1.57 and a beta of 0.40.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.50) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $17.54 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.85 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Verastem will post -3.02 earnings per share for the current year.

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.

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