Royal Bank of Canada Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Stock Price

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Free Report) had its price target reduced by Royal Bank of Canada from $16.00 to $14.00 in a research note published on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the biopharmaceutical company's stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $7.00 target price on shares of Verastem in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Verastem in a report on Friday, January 24th. BTIG Research increased their target price on shares of Verastem from $13.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 31st. B. Riley lifted their price target on shares of Verastem from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Verastem from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $13.88.

Verastem Stock Down 4.5 %

Shares of VSTM stock traded down $0.31 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $6.57. 653,613 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 916,745. The company has a market capitalization of $292.41 million, a P/E ratio of -2.06 and a beta of 0.60. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $6.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77, a quick ratio of 3.23 and a current ratio of 3.23. Verastem has a fifty-two week low of $2.10 and a fifty-two week high of $13.52.

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Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.33) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.76) by ($0.57). Research analysts predict that Verastem will post -3.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verastem

In related news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 8,568 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.24, for a total value of $44,896.32. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 347,581 shares in the company, valued at $1,821,324.44. This trade represents a 2.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 9,960 shares of company stock valued at $53,498 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Woodline Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Verastem during the fourth quarter valued at about $3,742,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verastem during the 4th quarter worth about $92,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its stake in shares of Verastem by 41.2% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 60,017 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $310,000 after acquiring an additional 17,500 shares during the period. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Verastem in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verastem during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Institutional investors own 88.37% of the company's stock.

About Verastem

Verastem, Inc, a development-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing drugs for the treatment of cancer in the United States. Its product candidates are Avutometinib, an orally available small molecule RAF/MEK clamp that inhibits the ras sarcoma RAF/MEK, ERK mitogen activated pathway kinase pathway which is involved in cell proliferation, migration, transformation, and survival of tumor cells; and Defactinib, an oral small molecule inhibitor of FAK and proline-rich tyrosine kinase for various solid tumors.