Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) Receives Average Recommendation of “Buy” from Analysts

Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) has earned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the seven analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $28.79.

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Verastem from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of Verastem in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $17.50 price objective on shares of Verastem in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th.

Verastem Stock Performance

VSTM stock opened at $9.38 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $11.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.64. Verastem has a 12-month low of $4.32 and a 12-month high of $15.18. The firm has a market cap of $237.39 million, a P/E ratio of -2.29 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 5.45, a quick ratio of 5.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.02) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.82) by ($0.20). As a group, equities research analysts predict that Verastem will post -4.31 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verastem

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its position in Verastem by 116.7% in the 3rd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,300,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,569,000 after acquiring an additional 700,000 shares during the period. Sectoral Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Verastem in the third quarter worth $1,653,000. Citigroup Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Verastem during the third quarter valued at $245,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Verastem by 27.7% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 22,758 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 4,939 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cannon Global Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Verastem in the first quarter worth about $131,000. 88.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.