Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Trading 7.1% Higher – Time to Buy?

Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) shares rose 7.1% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $8.31 and last traded at $8.56. Approximately 218,604 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 2,235,085 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.99.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on VSTM. Guggenheim set a $12.00 price objective on Verastem and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $18.00 target price on shares of Verastem in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered Verastem from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Verastem from $15.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $14.00 price target on Verastem and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $13.83.

Verastem Stock Up 5.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.25 and a quick ratio of 2.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $762.06 million, a P/E ratio of -3.16 and a beta of 0.32. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $6.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $5.64.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of VSTM. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Verastem by 157.2% in the 2nd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 569,195 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,174,000 after acquiring an additional 347,872 shares during the last quarter. AIGH Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verastem in the 1st quarter worth approximately $10,600,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Verastem in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $706,000. Exome Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verastem by 58.5% in the 1st quarter. Exome Asset Management LLC now owns 636,700 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,375,000 after purchasing an additional 234,957 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Opaleye Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Verastem in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,876,000. 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.