Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Stock Price Target Lowered at Royal Bank Of Canada

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) had its price target decreased by equities researchers at Royal Bank Of Canada from $19.00 to $18.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 117.31% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on VSTM. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Verastem in a report on Thursday, September 17th. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Verastem in a research report on Monday, September 28th. BTIG Research raised their target price on Verastem from $18.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $13.00 target price (up from $11.00) on shares of Verastem in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Eleven research 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.83.

Verastem Stock Down 11.7%

Shares of Verastem stock traded down $1.10 during trading on Friday, hitting $8.28. 4,615,338 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,586,052. The stock has a market cap of $750.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.13 and a beta of 0.45. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $8.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $6.24. Verastem has a 12-month low of $3.43 and a 12-month high of $10.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.25 and a quick ratio of 2.22.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 44,121 shares of Verastem stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.00, for a total transaction of $352,968.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 652,712 shares in the company, valued at $5,221,696. This trade represents a 6.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 48,041 shares of company stock worth $386,390. 1.94% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verastem

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VSTM. Opaleye Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verastem during the second quarter worth about $6,876,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 347,872 shares during the period. Exome Asset Management LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $3,375,000 after purchasing an additional 234,957 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Verastem during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $706,000. Finally, Seven Fleet Capital Management LP increased its position in Verastem by 715.1% during the first quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP now owns 123,400 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $654,000 after buying an additional 108,260 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.37% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Verastem

Here are the key news stories impacting Verastem this week:

• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright raised its price target to $20 from $18 and maintained a Buy rating, signaling increased confidence in Verastem’s potential.
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Dan Paterson sold 1,299 shares for about $12,470 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The sale was a small portion of his holdings; he retained 651,413 shares. SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Verastem reported a third-quarter loss of $0.74 per share, wider than analysts’ expected $0.47 loss. Revenue of $24.0 million also missed estimates of about $26.6 million. The loss improved from $1.35 per share a year earlier, but the quarterly misses are a near-term headwind. Third-quarter results

About Verastem

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.