Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $15.8333.

VSTM has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Verastem in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Verastem to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Verastem from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Finally, Mizuho set a $15.00 price objective on Verastem in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Daniel Calkins sold 5,039 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 104,719 shares in the company, valued at $749,788.04. This represents a 4.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.16, for a total value of $73,898.36. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 400,104 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,864,744.64. The trade was a 2.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 50,478 shares of company stock valued at $462,045. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verastem

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Verastem by 78.2% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 62,603 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $377,000 after acquiring an additional 27,477 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Verastem by 236.9% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 756,402 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,561,000 after purchasing an additional 531,873 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Verastem during the second quarter worth about $643,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Verastem during the second quarter worth about $106,000. Finally, Profund Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Verastem in the 2nd quarter worth about $90,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.37% of the company’s stock.

Verastem Stock Down 0.3%

VSTM stock opened at $5.82 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.58, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $7.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.29. Verastem has a 52 week low of $4.01 and a 52 week high of $11.24. The company has a market cap of $388.66 million, a P/E ratio of -1.44 and a beta of 0.41.

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.