Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Cut to “Sell” at Wall Street Zen

by · The Markets Daily

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM – Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report published on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on VSTM. Alliance Global Partners restated a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Guggenheim set a $12.00 price objective on shares of Verastem and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Verastem in a report on Thursday, September 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $13.00 target price (up from $11.00) on shares of Verastem in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $16.83.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on VSTM

Verastem Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VSTM opened at $8.70 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $787.87 million, a PE ratio of -4.24 and a beta of 0.45. 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 business has a fifty day moving average price of $8.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $6.26. Verastem has a fifty-two week low of $3.43 and a fifty-two week high of $10.82.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.74) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.47) by ($0.27). The company had revenue of $24.01 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.57 million. Verastem had a negative net margin of 231.59% and a negative return on equity of 467.49%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Verastem will post -1.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verastem

In related news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 44,121 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.00, for a total value of $352,968.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 652,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,221,696. This trade represents a 6.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 48,041 shares of company stock worth $386,390. 1.94% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in Verastem by 92.2% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 56,851 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $458,000 after buying an additional 27,273 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verastem during the third quarter worth $122,000. Aries Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Verastem by 6.5% during the third quarter. Aries Wealth Management now owns 32,833 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verastem during the third quarter worth $89,000. Finally, Opaleye Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Verastem in the 2nd quarter valued at $6,876,000. Institutional investors own 88.37% of the company’s stock.

Verastem Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Verastem, operating as Verastem Oncology, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing targeted therapies for cancer. The company’s research is centered on tumors driven by abnormalities in the RAS/MAPK signaling pathway, which can promote cancer-cell growth and resistance to treatment.

Verastem’s leading product candidates include avutometinib, an oral RAF/MEK clamp designed to inhibit signaling within the RAS/MAPK pathway, and defactinib, an oral focal adhesion kinase inhibitor.

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