Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Sets New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) shares reached a new 52-week high of $9.43 during trading, with a recent price of $9.29 and a trading volume of over 2.6 million shares.
• Research analysts have given Verastem an average rating of "Buy" with a target price of $13.29, highlighting recent upgrades from firms like Royal Bank Of Canada and B. Riley.
• The company's quarterly earnings report showed a loss of ($0.39) per share, exceeding analysts' estimates and generating $2.14 million in revenue, significantly below the expected $6.01 million.

Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $9.43 and last traded at $9.29, with a volume of 2610345 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.90.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VSTM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. 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. B. Riley raised Verastem to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 25th. Zacks Research raised Verastem to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Verastem from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Verastem from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verastem presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $13.29.

Verastem Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 3.44, a current ratio of 3.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. The company has a market cap of $567.77 million, a P/E ratio of -2.80 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $6.27 and a 200-day moving average of $6.34.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.39) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.64) by $0.25. The business had revenue of $2.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.01 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Verastem, Inc. will post -3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verastem news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 17,808 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.13, for a total transaction of $91,355.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 443,839 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,276,894.07. This trade represents a 3.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 24,488 shares of company stock worth $127,149. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verastem

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Verastem in the 4th quarter worth approximately $20,400,000. Armistice Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Verastem in the second quarter valued at approximately $8,864,000. Octagon Capital Advisors LP purchased a new stake in Verastem in the first quarter valued at approximately $10,372,000. BVF Inc. IL raised its position in Verastem by 62.1% in the second quarter. BVF Inc. IL now owns 3,404,425 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $14,128,000 after purchasing an additional 1,303,957 shares during the period. Finally, Foresite Capital Management VI LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verastem in the second quarter worth $5,298,000. 88.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.