Lazard Asset Management LLC Acquires Shares of 486,764 Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX)

Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 486,764 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $39,846,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.39% of Vaxcyte at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Vaxcyte during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Vaxcyte by 188.4% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 398 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new stake in Vaxcyte during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vaxcyte by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 742 shares of the company's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vaxcyte by 77,500.0% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 776 shares of the company's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 775 shares during the last quarter. 96.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on PCVX. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Vaxcyte from $138.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Vaxcyte in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an "overweight" rating on the stock. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Vaxcyte from $157.00 to $137.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Vaxcyte in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Vaxcyte to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $136.50.

Vaxcyte Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PCVX traded up $0.95 on Friday, reaching $31.85. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,522,478 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,335,764. Vaxcyte, Inc. has a 52-week low of $27.66 and a 52-week high of $121.06. The company has a market cap of $4.11 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.92 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $43.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $72.46.

Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The company reported ($1.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.02) by ($0.02). During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.85) EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Vaxcyte, Inc. will post -4.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vaxcyte

In other news, COO Jim Wassil sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.27, for a total value of $586,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 154,931 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,351,794.37. This trade represents a 4.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 3.10% of the company's stock.

Vaxcyte Profile

Vaxcyte, Inc, a clinical-stage biotechnology vaccine company, develops novel protein vaccines to prevent or treat bacterial infectious diseases. Its lead vaccine candidate is VAX-24, a 24-valent investigational pneumococcal conjugate vaccine for the prevention of invasive pneumococcal disease. The company also develops VAX-31 to protect against emerging strains and to help address antibiotic resistance; VAX-A1, a novel conjugate vaccine candidate to prevent disease caused by Group A Streptococcus; VAX-PG, a novel protein vaccine candidate targeting keystone pathogen responsible for periodontitis; and VAX-GI to prevent Shigella, a bacterial illness.