Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Reaches New 52-Week High - Here's What Happened

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 stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $9.43 and last traded at $9.29, with a volume of 2610345 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $8.90.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on VSTM shares. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Verastem from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of Verastem to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Wall Street Zen raised Verastem from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 10th. HC Wainwright upped their target price on shares of Verastem from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, B. Riley upgraded shares of Verastem to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verastem currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $13.29.

Verastem Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $569.25 million, a PE ratio of -2.82 and a beta of 0.83. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $6.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 3.46 and a quick ratio of 3.44.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 firm had revenue of $2.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.01 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Verastem, Inc. will post -3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verastem news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 17,808 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.13, for a total transaction of $91,355.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders sold a total of 24,488 shares of company stock worth $127,149 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in Verastem by 9.8% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 16,188 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 1,440 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Verastem by 51.5% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,997 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,698 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Verastem by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 14,680 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 2,281 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Verastem by 3.7% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 117,784 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $710,000 after buying an additional 4,183 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC lifted its stake 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 worth $103,000 after acquiring an additional 4,740 shares during the last quarter. 88.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.