Verastem’s (VSTM) Buy Rating Reiterated at BTIG Research

BTIG Research restated their buy rating on shares of Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. BTIG Research currently has a $19.00 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on VSTM. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Verastem in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Mizuho set a $18.00 target price on Verastem in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Wall Street Zen cut Verastem from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 11th. 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. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.60.

Verastem Stock Up 0.3%

NASDAQ:VSTM opened at $6.07 on Monday. Verastem has a 12-month low of $4.01 and a 12-month high of $11.24. The company has a quick ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 3.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $533.19 million, a P/E ratio of -1.90 and a beta of 0.43. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $5.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $7.36.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.50) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $17.54 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.85 million. Equities research analysts expect that Verastem will post -1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Verastem

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of Verastem by 9.8% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 16,188 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,440 shares in the last quarter. Aries Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Verastem by 10.5% in the third quarter. Aries Wealth Management now owns 26,249 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verastem by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 28,929 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 2,784 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Verastem by 182.9% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,578 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 2,960 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Verastem by 27.1% in the fourth quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 20,476 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $158,000 after purchasing an additional 4,366 shares in the last quarter. 88.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Verastem

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.