Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) Stock Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $5.47 and traded as high as $6.10. Verastem shares last traded at $6.00, with a volume of 2,531,911 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VSTM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Verastem from $16.00 to $14.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Alliance Global Partners restated a “buy” rating on shares of Verastem in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $14.00 target price on Verastem and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Verastem from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Verastem from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, June 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $14.40.

Verastem Stock Up 4.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 3.00 and a current ratio of 3.04. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $4.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.47. The firm has a market cap of $527.22 million, a P/E ratio of -2.22 and a beta of 0.29.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Dan Paterson sold 20,871 shares of Verastem stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.18, for a total transaction of $87,240.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 591,242 shares in the company, valued at $2,471,391.56. This trade represents a 3.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.94% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verastem

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Verastem by 157.2% during 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 last quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP increased its holdings in Verastem by 715.1% during the 1st quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP now owns 123,400 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $654,000 after purchasing an additional 108,260 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Verastem by 31.6% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 416,985 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,210,000 after purchasing an additional 100,123 shares during the last quarter. ADAR1 Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verastem in the first quarter worth approximately $377,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of Verastem by 15.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 110,729 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $587,000 after purchasing an additional 14,683 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.37% of the company’s stock.

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.