Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 97,507 Shares of Vaxcyte, Inc. $PCVX

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management reduced its Vaxcyte stake by 96.1%, selling 97,507 shares and retaining 3,926 shares valued at approximately $223,000. Institutional investors collectively own 96.78% of PCVX.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with seven Buy ratings, one Hold, and one Sell. Vaxcyte has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $110.50.
• PCVX opened at $60.43, while recent insider sales totaled 92,890 shares worth about $6.32 million. The company reported a quarterly loss of $1.97 per share, beating estimates for a $2.06 loss.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. cut its position in shares of Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX - Free Report) by 96.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,926 shares of the company's stock after selling 97,507 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in Vaxcyte were worth $223,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Vaxcyte by 72.8% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 560 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Vaxcyte by 1,924.4% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 830 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 789 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vaxcyte by 68.4% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,248 shares of the company's stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 507 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new position in shares of Vaxcyte in the 2nd quarter worth $75,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Vaxcyte in the 2nd quarter worth $78,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.78% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on PCVX. BTIG Research reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $89.00 target price on shares of Vaxcyte in a report on Monday, October 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Vaxcyte in a report on Monday, October 12th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Vaxcyte from $133.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vaxcyte in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on Vaxcyte from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $110.50.

Vaxcyte Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PCVX opened at $60.43 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $61.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $57.28. Vaxcyte, Inc. has a 12-month low of $39.87 and a 12-month high of $90.75.

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

Insider Activity at Vaxcyte

In other Vaxcyte news, insider Harpreet S. Dhaliwal sold 17,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.00, for a total value of $935,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 76,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,221,580. This trade represents a 18.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Jim Wassil sold 18,000 shares of Vaxcyte stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.74, for a total value of $1,561,320.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 145,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,615,031.90. This trade represents a 11.01% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 92,890 shares of company stock worth $6,320,569 over the last quarter. 3.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vaxcyte Company Profile

Vaxcyte, Inc NASDAQ: PCVX is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing vaccines designed to protect against serious bacterial diseases. The company is headquartered in San Carlos, California, and uses its proprietary cell-free protein synthesis and conjugation technologies to develop vaccine candidates intended to provide broad and durable immune protection.

Vaxcyte's lead programs target pneumococcal disease, an infection caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae.

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