Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) Lowered to "Sell" Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Novavax from “hold” to “sell,” while analyst opinions remain mixed. MarketBeat reports a consensus “hold” rating and an average price target of $13.00.
• Novavax shares opened at $7.32, below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages of approximately $9.00, with a one-year range of $6.20 to $11.97.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting an adjusted loss of $0.06 per share versus the estimated $0.25 loss and revenue of $118.9 million, though revenue declined 79% year over year and profitability remained negative.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on NVAX. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Novavax from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. B. Riley Financial reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Novavax in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Novavax from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $19.00 price objective on shares of Novavax in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Novavax from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Novavax currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $13.00.

Novavax Price Performance

Shares of NVAX stock opened at $7.32 on Friday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $9.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.99. Novavax has a one year low of $6.20 and a one year high of $11.97. The firm has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.62 and a beta of 2.43.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.06) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.25) by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $118.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.81 million. Novavax had a negative return on equity of 14.82% and a negative net margin of 14.73%.The business's revenue for the quarter was down 79.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.93 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Novavax will post -0.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Novavax

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new position in shares of Novavax in the first quarter valued at about $4,234,000. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in Novavax by 39.9% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 186,638 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,519,000 after acquiring an additional 53,234 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its holdings in Novavax by 53.4% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 35,359 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 12,304 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Novavax in the 1st quarter valued at about $4,049,000. Finally, Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in Novavax in the 1st quarter valued at about $90,000. 53.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novavax Company Profile

Novavax, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, that specializes in the discovery, development and commercialization of next-generation vaccines to prevent serious infectious diseases. Founded in 1987, the company has built a platform based on recombinant nanoparticle technology and its proprietary Matrix-M™ adjuvant to enhance immune responses.

The company's lead product is NVX-CoV2373, a protein-based vaccine designed to elicit a robust immune response against the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

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