Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Coverage Initiated at HC Wainwright

HC Wainwright initiated coverage on shares of Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) in a research report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $18.00 price target on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. HC Wainwright’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 185.71% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on VSTM. Mizuho set a $15.00 price target on Verastem in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Verastem to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Verastem in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Verastem from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $15.83.

Verastem Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ VSTM opened at $6.30 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $8.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $8.27. The firm has a market cap of $420.71 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.56 and a beta of 0.41. Verastem has a 1 year low of $4.01 and a 1 year high of $11.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a current ratio of 2.58.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.35) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.51) by ($0.84). The business had revenue of $11.24 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.76 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Verastem will post -3.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Verastem news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 10,321 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The stock was 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 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. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael Kauffman sold 8,550 shares of Verastem stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total value of $85,500.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 8,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $86,660. This represents a 49.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 49,508 shares of company stock valued at $455,556 in the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verastem

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake 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 worth $67,000 after buying an additional 1,440 shares during the period. Aries Wealth Management raised its position in Verastem by 10.5% in the third quarter. Aries Wealth Management now owns 26,249 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $232,000 after acquiring an additional 2,500 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Verastem by 182.9% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,578 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 2,960 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Verastem by 110.9% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 8,550 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 4,496 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Verastem by 28.8% during the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 29,945 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $124,000 after purchasing an additional 6,691 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.37% of the company’s stock.

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.