Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX) Stock Rated "Moderate Buy" by Sell-Side Brokerages

Key Points

• Vaxcyte has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from nine analysts: seven buys, one hold, and one sell. The average 12-month price target is $110.50.
• Recent analyst actions were largely positive, including higher targets from Guggenheim and an “overweight” rating from Cantor Fitzgerald, although Bank of America trimmed its target to $130.
• Insiders sold 92,890 shares worth approximately $6.3 million over the past 90 days, while institutional investors own a substantial 96.78% stake in the company.

Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the nine brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $110.50.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Vaxcyte from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $120.00 price objective on shares of Vaxcyte in a report on Monday, October 12th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Vaxcyte from $133.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 28th. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and set a $89.00 price objective on shares of Vaxcyte in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Vaxcyte from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Andrew Guggenhime sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.89, for a total transaction of $538,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 105,176 shares in the company, valued at $5,667,934.64. This trade represents a 8.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Harpreet Dhaliwal sold 17,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.00, for a total transaction of $935,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 76,756 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,221,580. This represents a 18.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 92,890 shares of company stock worth $6,320,569. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Light Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Vaxcyte by 143.4% in the 2nd quarter. First Light Asset Management LLC now owns 345,157 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,064,000 after purchasing an additional 203,373 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in Vaxcyte by 73.4% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,216,843 shares of the company's stock worth $70,711,000 after purchasing an additional 515,209 shares in the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. acquired a new position in Vaxcyte during the first quarter worth $18,306,000. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Vaxcyte by 406.4% during the first quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP now owns 128,450 shares of the company's stock worth $7,464,000 after purchasing an additional 103,085 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP purchased a new position in shares of Vaxcyte during the second quarter worth $1,906,000. 96.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vaxcyte Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PCVX opened at $63.62 on Friday. Vaxcyte has a one year low of $39.87 and a one year high of $90.75. The stock has a market cap of $9.47 billion, a PE ratio of -8.34 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $61.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.08.

Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($1.97) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($2.06) by $0.09. During the same period last year, the business posted ($1.22) EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Vaxcyte will post -7.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Vaxcyte

Vaxcyte, Inc NASDAQ: PCVX is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing vaccines to help prevent serious bacterial infections. The company uses its cell-free protein synthesis and advanced conjugation technologies to design vaccines intended to provide broad and durable protection while addressing limitations of existing vaccine products.

Vaxcyte's lead programs are pneumococcal conjugate vaccine candidates, including VAX-24 and VAX-31, which are designed to target a broad range of pneumococcal serotypes.

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