Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Verastem, Inc. has received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with eight out of nine ratings leaning towards a buy.
• The average 12-month target price set by brokerages for Verastem is $13.29, with several analysts recently raising their price targets.
• In recent insider trading, CEO Dan Paterson sold 17,808 shares, reducing his ownership by 3.86%, highlighting a notable executive sell-off.

Shares of Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the nine brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $13.2857.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VSTM shares. HC Wainwright raised their price target on shares of Verastem from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Verastem to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Verastem from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Verastem from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 10th.

Verastem Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VSTM traded down $0.18 during trading on Friday, reaching $7.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,828,214 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,778,679. The firm has a market cap of $479.40 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.38 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 3.44 and a current ratio of 3.46. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $5.59 and a 200-day moving average of $6.13. Verastem has a 12 month low of $2.34 and a 12 month high of $9.10.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.39) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.64) by $0.25. The company had revenue of $2.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.01 million. Research analysts expect that Verastem will post -3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Verastem

In other Verastem news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 17,808 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.13, for a total transaction of $91,355.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 443,839 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,276,894.07. The trade was a 3.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 24,488 shares of company stock worth $127,149. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verastem

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in Verastem by 51.5% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,997 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,698 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verastem during the 4th quarter valued at $56,000. Voya Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verastem during the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Verastem during the 2nd quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verastem during the 4th quarter valued at $61,000. Institutional investors own 88.37% of the company's stock.

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.