Vaxcyte, Inc. $PCVX Shares Purchased by UBS Group AG

Key Points

• UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Vaxcyte by 29% in Q4, buying 246,020 shares to hold 1,093,593 shares (0.84% of the company) worth about $50.46 million, while institutional investors own 96.78% of the stock.
• Insiders have been selling: company insiders sold 17,037 shares (~$994,899) over the past 90 days, including COO Jim Wassil (2,250 shares) and CAO Elvia Cowan (3,000 shares), with those trades executed under pre‑arranged Rule 10b5‑1 plans; insiders still hold 3.10%.
• Company and analyst snapshot: Vaxcyte is a clinical‑stage biotech with a market cap of about $8.03 billion and recent negative EPS (missed last quarter), and analysts show mixed views but an average "Moderate Buy" rating with a mean price target of $86.

UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX - Free Report) by 29.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,093,593 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 246,020 shares during the period. UBS Group AG owned 0.84% of Vaxcyte worth $50,458,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its position in Vaxcyte by 105.3% in the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 70,124 shares of the company's stock worth $3,236,000 after buying an additional 35,974 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of Vaxcyte by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 40,002 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,846,000 after purchasing an additional 1,253 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Vaxcyte by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 24,579 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,134,000 after purchasing an additional 1,395 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vaxcyte by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,840 shares of the company's stock valued at $131,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vaxcyte by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the company's stock valued at $285,000 after purchasing an additional 1,028 shares during the period. 96.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Vaxcyte

In other news, COO Jim Wassil sold 2,250 shares of Vaxcyte stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.83, for a total transaction of $127,867.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 160,744 shares in the company, valued at $9,135,081.52. The trade was a 1.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing 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, CAO Elvia Cowan sold 3,000 shares of Vaxcyte stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $180,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 28,975 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,738,500. This represents a 9.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 17,037 shares of company stock valued at $994,899 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.10% of the company's stock.

Vaxcyte Trading Down 4.9%

Shares of NASDAQ PCVX opened at $55.60 on Wednesday. Vaxcyte, Inc. has a one year low of $28.09 and a one year high of $65.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.03 billion, a PE ratio of -9.89 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $58.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.67.

Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported ($1.80) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.46) by ($0.34). During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($1.12) earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Vaxcyte, Inc. will post -7 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PCVX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BTIG Research lifted their target price on Vaxcyte from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Wall Street Zen lowered Vaxcyte from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Vaxcyte in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vaxcyte in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on Vaxcyte from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vaxcyte presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $86.00.

Vaxcyte Company Profile

Vaxcyte, Inc NASDAQ: PCVX is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing a new generation of preventive vaccines aimed at combating serious bacterial diseases. Headquartered in San Carlos, California, Vaxcyte leverages proprietary conjugation technologies to design and manufacture multivalent vaccines targeting pathogens for which there remain significant unmet medical needs. The company's platform is intended to streamline the production of conjugate vaccines by improving antigen presentation and broadening strain coverage compared with conventional approaches.

Vaxcyte's lead candidate, VAX-24, is a 24-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine designed to protect against 24 serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae.

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