Verastem, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSTM) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing novel drugs that selectively target cancer stem cells. Cancer stem cells are an underlying cause of tumor recurrence and metastasis. Verastem is translating discoveries in cancer stem cell research into new medicines for the treatment of major cancers such as breast cancer.
Lazard Capital Markets has released a report about Verastem and assigned it a BUY rating with an $11 price and a $20 price target: "We believe VSTM shares will appeal to investors by virtue of the company’s world-class scientific founders, highly experienced management team, and a research focus that may possess the potential to dramatically change the manner in which cancer is treated."
The Investment Summary is as follows:
"Founded by world-class cancer biologists and experienced venture capitalists, Verastem is developing small-molecule drugs for the treatment of cancer with the specific focus of targeting cancer stem cells (CSCs). The underpinning theory behind Verastem’s approach is that, while typical cancer therapies may be effective in killing mature and differentiated cancer cells, ineffective killing of CSCs may provide the means for the tumors to re-grow. To facilitate development of CSC-targeting therapies, Verastem’s founders developed technologies to manipulate the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) to create CSCs. With them, standard high-throughput screening processes are applied to identify promising leads. Capital raised in the company’s IPO should support activities through to potential human proof of concept (POC). If Verastem is successful in the development of drugs that target CSCs, we believe there may be a high level of interest from other biopharma industry companies focused on developing cancer therapies."