Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) Receives $13.38 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Buy" by the nine research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $13.63.

VSTM has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded Verastem from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Verastem in a research note on Friday, January 24th. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and set a $7.00 price objective on shares of Verastem in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Verastem from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Verastem from $13.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verastem news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 8,568 shares of the company'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 transaction of $44,896.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 347,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,821,324.44. This represents a 2.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,321 shares of company stock worth $52,217. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verastem

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Stonepine Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Verastem in the third quarter worth $3,918,000. Nantahala Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Verastem in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,192,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Verastem by 67.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 890,599 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,663,000 after acquiring an additional 359,060 shares during the period. Walleye Capital LLC boosted its stake in Verastem by 493.7% during the third quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 216,126 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $646,000 after acquiring an additional 179,725 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp grew its holdings in Verastem by 18.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 424,264 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,269,000 after purchasing an additional 65,265 shares during the period. 88.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verastem Price Performance

NASDAQ VSTM traded down $0.14 on Wednesday, reaching $6.08. 834,619 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,632,105. The stock has a market cap of $270.60 million, a PE ratio of -1.91 and a beta of 0.24. Verastem has a 12 month low of $2.10 and a 12 month high of $14.22. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $5.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77, a current ratio of 3.23 and a quick ratio of 3.23.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.60) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.71) by $0.11. As a group, research analysts predict that Verastem will post -3.02 earnings per share for the current year.

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.