Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results

Key Points

• Verastem reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of ($0.39), beating analysts' estimates of ($0.64), but fell short on revenue with $2.14 million compared to the expected $6.01 million.
• The company's stock traded up 19.9% after the earnings report, reaching $6.74 per share, with a market cap of $370.36 million.
• Analysts remain bullish on Verastem, with the average rating at "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $13.50, although there is one sell rating among nine buy ratings.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.39) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.64) by $0.25, Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $2.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.01 million.

Verastem Trading Up 19.9%

NASDAQ:VSTM traded up $1.12 on Friday, hitting $6.74. 3,890,307 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,294,596. The company has a market cap of $370.36 million, a PE ratio of -2.05 and a beta of 0.83. Verastem has a 1 year low of $2.24 and a 1 year high of $9.10. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $5.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $6.04.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on VSTM shares. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on Verastem from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Verastem in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $15.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Verastem from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, April 18th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Verastem from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $13.50.

Insider Transactions at Verastem

In other Verastem news, CFO Daniel Calkins sold 11,143 shares of the 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 $90,592.59. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 114,055 shares in the company, valued at $927,267.15. This represents a 8.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dan Paterson sold 58,677 shares of Verastem stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.13, for a total transaction 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 94,308 shares of company stock worth $694,786 in the last quarter. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verastem

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Verastem by 24.9% in the second 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. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Verastem by 236.9% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 756,402 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $4,561,000 after purchasing an additional 531,873 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Verastem by 78.2% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 62,603 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $377,000 after purchasing an additional 27,477 shares during the last quarter. 88.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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