Brokerages Set Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) Price Target at $16.33

Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the ten brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation, six have assigned a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $17.00.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on VSTM shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Verastem from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. HC Wainwright initiated coverage on Verastem in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $18.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research cut Verastem from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Verastem in a research note on Thursday.

Verastem Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of VSTM stock opened at $6.30 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 3.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. Verastem has a fifty-two week low of $4.01 and a fifty-two week high of $11.24. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $6.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $8.16. The stock has a market cap of $420.71 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.97 and a beta of 0.40.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $17.54 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.85 million. On average, analysts anticipate that Verastem will post -3.02 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Verastem

In other Verastem news, CFO Daniel Calkins sold 5,039 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.16, for a total value of $36,079.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 104,719 shares in the company, valued at $749,788.04. This represents a 4.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dan Paterson sold 10,321 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.16, for a total transaction of $73,898.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 400,104 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,864,744.64. This trade represents a 2.51% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 19,678 shares of company stock worth $148,825 over the last three months. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its holdings in Verastem by 2,995.6% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 351,569 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,459,000 after purchasing an additional 340,212 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Verastem during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $106,000. Panagora Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Verastem during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $550,000. Armistice Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Verastem during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,864,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Verastem in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $643,000. 88.37% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verastem Company Profile

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.