Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) Short Interest Update

Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 806,400 shares, an increase of 27.1% from the March 31st total of 634,500 shares. Currently, 3.9% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 144,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.6 days.

Verastem Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of VSTM opened at $9.38 on Friday. Verastem has a 1 year low of $4.32 and a 1 year high of $15.18. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $11.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $9.62. The company has a quick ratio of 5.45, a current ratio of 5.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Verastem (NASDAQ:VSTM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.02) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.82) by ($0.20). Equities research analysts anticipate that Verastem will post -4.31 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on VSTM shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of Verastem in a research note on Friday, March 15th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $17.50 target price on shares of Verastem in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Verastem from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $28.79.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verastem

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VSTM. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its stake in Verastem by 116.7% in the third quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,300,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,569,000 after buying an additional 700,000 shares during the last quarter. Sectoral Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Verastem during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,653,000. Citigroup Inc. acquired a new stake in Verastem in the third quarter valued at approximately $245,000. Cannon Global Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Verastem in the first quarter valued at approximately $131,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Verastem by 114,375.0% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 9,158 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 9,150 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.37% of the company’s stock.

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.