Brokerages Set Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) PT at $13.38

Shares of Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Buy" from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $13.38.

Several research firms have issued reports on VSTM. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Verastem in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on Verastem from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised Verastem from an "outperform" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $16.00 to $12.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Guggenheim upped their price target on Verastem from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Verastem from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th.

Verastem Stock Performance

NASDAQ VSTM traded up $0.14 during trading on Friday, hitting $4.29. 2,720,505 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,237,758. The stock has a market capitalization of $235.74 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.34 and a beta of 0.72. Verastem has a 12-month low of $2.10 and a 12-month high of $9.10. The business has a 50 day moving average of $6.52 and a 200-day moving average of $5.98.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.96) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.72) by ($0.24). On average, analysts expect that Verastem will post -3.02 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 58,677 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.13, for a total value of $477,044.01. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 461,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,755,913.66. This trade represents a 11.27% 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. Also, CFO Daniel Calkins sold 11,143 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owned 114,055 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $927,267.15. This represents a 8.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 93,796 shares of company stock valued at $693,033 in the last three months. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verastem

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in Verastem by 51.5% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Verastem by 18.4% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 14,680 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 2,281 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Verastem by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 117,784 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $710,000 after purchasing an additional 4,183 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verastem by 31.2% during the 4th quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 19,932 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 4,740 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Verastem by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 61,445 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $318,000 after buying an additional 5,737 shares in 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.