Verastem’s (VSTM) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at HC Wainwright

HC Wainwright reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) in a research report report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. HC Wainwright currently has a $18.00 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on VSTM. Wall Street Zen raised Verastem from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 5th. Guggenheim set a $12.00 price objective on Verastem and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $18.00 target price on shares of Verastem in a report on Friday. Mizuho set a $13.00 target price on Verastem and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Verastem from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $13.83.

Verastem Price Performance

NASDAQ:VSTM opened at $7.32 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $662.90 million, a PE ratio of -2.75 and a beta of 0.32. Verastem has a 12 month low of $3.43 and a 12 month high of $10.82. The company has a quick ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $6.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.57.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.35) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.43) by $0.08. Verastem had a negative net margin of 231.59% and a negative return on equity of 467.49%. The firm had revenue of $40.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.88 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Verastem will post -1.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verastem news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 20,871 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.18, for a total transaction of $87,240.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 591,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,471,391.56. This represents a 3.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 26,262 shares of company stock valued at $111,897. Insiders own 1.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verastem

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Verastem by 182.9% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,578 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 2,960 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Verastem in the second quarter worth about $49,000. Nebula Research & Development LLC acquired a new stake in Verastem in the second quarter worth about $53,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 1,440 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Verastem by 110.9% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 8,550 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 4,496 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.37% of the company’s stock.

Verastem Company Profile

Verastem Oncology is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing targeted therapies for cancers driven by abnormalities in the RAS/MAPK signaling pathway. The company’s research is aimed at addressing cancers with limited treatment options, including ovarian cancer and other solid tumors.

Verastem’s principal products include avutometinib, a RAF/MEK pathway inhibitor, and defactinib, a focal adhesion kinase (FAK) inhibitor. The company has studied these therapies both individually and in combination, with the goal of improving cancer-cell response and overcoming treatment resistance.