Short Interest in Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) Increases By 59.5%

Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,930,000 shares, a growth of 59.5% from the December 31st total of 3,090,000 shares. Currently, 12.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,480,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.3 days.

Verastem Trading Up 3.2 %

VSTM stock opened at $6.22 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $5.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.73. The company has a quick ratio of 3.23, a current ratio of 3.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77. Verastem has a 1 year low of $2.10 and a 1 year high of $14.22.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.60) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.71) by $0.11. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verastem will post -3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 8,568 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.24, for a total value of $44,896.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 347,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,821,324.44. This trade represents a 2.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders sold 10,321 shares of company stock worth $52,217 over the last three months. Insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verastem

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Stonepine Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verastem in the 3rd quarter valued at $3,918,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verastem by 67.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 890,599 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,663,000 after purchasing an additional 359,060 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Verastem by 18.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 424,264 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,269,000 after purchasing an additional 65,265 shares during the last quarter. Walleye Capital LLC grew its stake in Verastem by 493.7% during the 3rd quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 216,126 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $646,000 after buying an additional 179,725 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Verastem by 46.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 103,601 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 32,791 shares during the period. 88.37% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Verastem from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Verastem in a research report on Friday, October 18th. BTIG Research increased their price target on Verastem from $13.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 31st. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Verastem from $13.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.38.

Verastem Company Profile

Verastem, Inc, a development-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing drugs for the treatment of cancer in the United States. Its product candidates are Avutometinib, an orally available small molecule RAF/MEK clamp that inhibits the ras sarcoma RAF/MEK, ERK mitogen activated pathway kinase pathway which is involved in cell proliferation, migration, transformation, and survival of tumor cells; and Defactinib, an oral small molecule inhibitor of FAK and proline-rich tyrosine kinase for various solid tumors.