Mizuho Has Lowered Expectations for Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Stock Price

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) had its target price decreased by research analysts at Mizuho from $16.00 to $14.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Mizuho’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 196.61% from the stock’s previous close.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. BTIG Research reduced their price objective on Verastem from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 8th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $18.00 target price on shares of Verastem in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Wall Street Zen raised Verastem from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Alliance Global Partners reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $15.00 price objective (down from $19.00) on shares of Verastem in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $15.60.

Verastem Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:VSTM opened at $4.72 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.00, a current ratio of 3.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $414.75 million, a P/E ratio of -1.75 and a beta of 0.34. Verastem has a 12 month low of $4.01 and a 12 month high of $11.24. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $5.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $7.05.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.50) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.49) by ($0.01). Verastem had a negative return on equity of 486.40% and a negative net margin of 391.17%.The company had revenue of $17.54 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.85 million. As a group, research analysts forecast that Verastem will post -1.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Verastem by 31.8% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 161,707 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $857,000 after purchasing an additional 39,018 shares during the last quarter. Torray Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in Verastem by 38.2% in the first quarter. Torray Investment Partners LLC now owns 298,958 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,584,000 after purchasing an additional 82,571 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in Verastem in the first quarter valued at about $210,000. AIGH Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verastem in the first quarter valued at about $10,600,000. Finally, Seven Fleet Capital Management LP bought a new position in Verastem during the fourth quarter worth about $117,000. 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.