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

Shares of Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Buy" by the nine research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $13.63.

Several brokerages recently commented on VSTM. Guggenheim upped their target price on Verastem from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Verastem from $16.00 to $14.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 21st. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Verastem in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $15.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Verastem from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Verastem from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, April 18th.

Verastem Trading Up 4.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:VSTM traded up $0.27 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $6.17. The stock had a trading volume of 1,959,666 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,128,427. Verastem has a 52 week low of $2.10 and a 52 week high of $9.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77, a quick ratio of 3.23 and a current ratio of 3.23. The firm's fifty day moving average is $6.58 and its 200 day moving average is $5.90. The stock has a market cap of $339.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.93 and a beta of 0.85.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.96) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.72) by ($0.24). As a group, equities analysts forecast that Verastem will post -3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verastem news, CFO Daniel Calkins sold 11,143 shares of Verastem stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.13, for a total transaction of $90,592.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 114,055 shares in the company, valued at approximately $927,267.15. The trade was a 8.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dan Paterson sold 58,677 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.13, for a total value of $477,044.01. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 461,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,755,913.66. This trade represents a 11.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 71,168 shares of company stock worth $577,292. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets purchased a new stake in Verastem in the 4th quarter valued at about $387,000. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Verastem by 30.5% during the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 39,593 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $205,000 after purchasing an additional 9,254 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verastem during the 4th quarter worth $56,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its stake in shares of Verastem by 41.3% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 20,571 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 6,012 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Verastem by 38.0% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 37,629 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $195,000 after buying an additional 10,352 shares during the last quarter. 88.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Verastem

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.