Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) Stock Has Consensus Price Target of $16.83

Shares of Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $16.83.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on VSTM shares. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Verastem in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Alliance Global Partners restated a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Verastem from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, November 7th. Finally, BTIG Research lifted their price target on Verastem from $18.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th.

Insider Transactions at Verastem

In other news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 44,121 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.00, for a total value of $352,968.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 652,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,221,696. This trade represents a 6.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 48,041 shares of company stock worth $386,390 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.94% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verastem

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Aries Wealth Management lifted its position in Verastem by 6.5% in the third quarter. Aries Wealth Management now owns 32,833 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Verastem during the third quarter worth $89,000. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Verastem by 15.3% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 110,729 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $587,000 after buying an additional 14,683 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC bought a new position in Verastem during the third quarter valued at $122,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in Verastem by 92.2% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 56,851 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $458,000 after acquiring an additional 27,273 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.37% of the company’s stock.

Verastem Trading Down 7.2%

Shares of VSTM stock opened at $8.44 on Tuesday. Verastem has a 12-month low of $3.43 and a 12-month high of $10.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.19. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $8.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $6.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $764.33 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.12 and a beta of 0.45.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.74) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.47) by ($0.27). The firm had revenue of $24.01 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.57 million. Verastem had a negative net margin of 178.38% and a negative return on equity of 359.49%. Equities research analysts predict that Verastem will post -1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verastem Company Profile

Verastem, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing medicines for cancer. Its research has centered on signaling pathways involved in tumor growth, including the RAS/MAPK pathway. The company’s product, AVMAPKI FAKZYNJA CO-PACK, combines avutometinib and defactinib. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the combination for certain adults with KRAS-mutated recurrent low-grade serous ovarian cancer who have received prior systemic therapy. Verastem is based in Needham, Massachusetts, and also develops investigational cancer therapies, including potential uses of avutometinib in combination with other medicines.