Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) Stock Price Down 6.8% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Novavax shares fell 6.8% to $8.20 after a sector-wide rally faded, with trading volume well below average. The decline suggests profit-taking and cooling enthusiasm following positive cancer-vaccine news from Moderna.
• Novavax’s recent momentum has been driven largely by broader biotechnology sentiment and heavy call-option activity, rather than company-specific fundamentals. The company continues to report losses and a sharp 76.2% year-over-year revenue decline.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $14.00; institutional investors own approximately 53% of the stock.

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX - Get Free Report)'s share price dropped 6.8% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $8.27 and last traded at $8.1950. Approximately 1,095,138 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 4,602,906 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.79.

Novavax News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Novavax this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Positive late-stage melanoma-treatment results from Moderna boosted sentiment across the vaccine sector, lifting expectations that successful cancer vaccines could create a significant new commercial market. Novavax shares rose alongside other vaccine developers as investors reassessed the sector’s growth potential. Novavax shares rise on cancer-vaccine optimism
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy options activity indicated speculative bullish interest: traders purchased 25,659 NVAX call options, roughly 156% above typical call volume. This may have contributed to the prior-session rally, although options activity does not change Novavax’s underlying fundamentals.
• Neutral Sentiment: The broader biotechnology rally also lifted BioNTech and CRISPR-related stocks. However, analysts cautioned that the momentum could fade, suggesting the gains may be driven more by sector sentiment than by near-term improvements in Novavax’s earnings outlook. Biotechnology stocks trend in premarket trading
• Negative Sentiment: Novavax and other biotechnology stocks slipped in premarket trading after surging Wednesday, indicating profit-taking and a cooling of the initial reaction to the cancer-therapy news. The company still faces weak operating results, including sharply lower year-over-year revenue and continuing losses, which could limit the durability of the rally. Recursion, Novavax and CRISPR stocks premarket update

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NVAX has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Novavax from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. TD Cowen upped their target price on Novavax from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Novavax in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Zacks Research lowered Novavax from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Novavax in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $14.00.

Novavax Stock Down 6.1%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $8.49 and a 200 day moving average of $8.91. The firm has a market cap of $1.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.43 and a beta of 2.46.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.32) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.38) by $0.06. Novavax had a negative return on equity of 14.82% and a negative net margin of 59.87%.The firm had revenue of $56.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $52.51 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.62 EPS. Novavax's quarterly revenue was down 76.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Novavax, Inc. will post -0.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novavax

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Novavax during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of Novavax by 917.3% in the 1st quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 4,242 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 3,825 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its position in shares of Novavax by 34.9% in the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,746 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,229 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of Novavax in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Novavax by 25.8% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 7,896 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 1,617 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 53.04% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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