Verastem's (VSTM) Buy Rating Reaffirmed at BTIG Research

Key Points

• BTIG Research reaffirmed a "Buy" rating on Verastem with a $19.00 price target, implying roughly a 189.86% upside from the prior close.
• The stock trades around $6.56 while the market consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with a $16.60 average price target; the company recently reported a slight EPS miss (‑$0.50 vs. ‑$0.49) but revenue beat expectations.
• Institutional ownership is very high (88.37%), with large recent additions from firms including Polar Capital, Armistice, Farallon and Foresite, signaling notable investor accumulation.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reaffirmed by equities researchers at BTIG Research in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $19.00 target price on the biopharmaceutical company's stock. BTIG Research's target price suggests a potential upside of 189.86% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Mizuho set a $18.00 target price on shares of Verastem in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $15.00 target price (down from $19.00) on shares of Verastem in a report on Monday, March 30th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Verastem in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Verastem in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $18.00 target price on shares of Verastem in a report on Friday, April 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verastem currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $16.60.

Verastem Stock Performance

Verastem stock traded down $0.03 on Monday, hitting $6.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,123,019 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,974,465. The firm has a market cap of $575.79 million, a P/E ratio of -2.05 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a quick ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 3.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $5.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $7.41. Verastem has a one year low of $4.01 and a one year high of $11.24.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.50) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $17.54 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.85 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Verastem will post -3.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VSTM. Polar Capital Holdings Plc lifted its position in Verastem by 270.7% during the 4th quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc now owns 3,925,126 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $30,302,000 after buying an additional 2,866,350 shares in the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verastem during the 4th quarter worth about $15,440,000. SymBiosis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Verastem during the 4th quarter worth about $15,440,000. Armistice Capital LLC lifted its position in Verastem by 68.7% during the 4th quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 3,536,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $27,298,000 after buying an additional 1,440,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foresite Capital Management VI LLC lifted its position in Verastem by 104.9% during the 3rd quarter. Foresite Capital Management VI LLC now owns 2,615,120 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $23,092,000 after buying an additional 1,338,600 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.37% of the company's stock.

About Verastem

Verastem Oncology, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of small molecule therapies that target cancer stemness and resistance pathways. Established in 2010 and headquartered in Needham, Massachusetts, Verastem Oncology applies a precision-medicine approach to identify key signaling nodes responsible for tumor growth and relapse, with an emphasis on hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. The company’s research platform integrates insights into complex signaling networks to advance novel compounds from early discovery through clinical proof of concept.

The company’s lead marketed product is COPIKTRA (duvelisib), an oral inhibitor of PI3K-delta and PI3K-gamma, which received U.S.

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