Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) Trading 7.7% Higher - Time to Buy?

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX - Get Free Report) shares were up 7.7% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $7.18 and last traded at $7.12. Approximately 4,231,991 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 36% from the average daily volume of 6,589,922 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.61.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Novavax in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. They issued a "sell" rating and a $6.00 target price on the stock. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating on shares of Novavax in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Novavax from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $17.00.

Novavax Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.11 billion, a PE ratio of 2.58, a PEG ratio of 0.06 and a beta of 2.69. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $6.79 and a 200 day moving average of $7.43.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $2.22. The firm had revenue of $666.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $204.08 million. Novavax had a net margin of 38.14% and a negative return on equity of 115.51%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 610.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($1.05) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Novavax, Inc. will post -1.46 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Novavax

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NVAX. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new stake in Novavax during the second quarter worth approximately $1,016,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Novavax during the second quarter valued at $73,000. Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in shares of Novavax by 3.3% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 215,413 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,381,000 after acquiring an additional 6,949 shares during the period. Strs Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Novavax in the 1st quarter worth about $167,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Novavax during the 1st quarter worth about $404,000. 53.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Novavax

Novavax, Inc, a biotechnology company, that promotes improved health by discovering, developing, and commercializing vaccines to protect against serious infectious diseases. It offers vaccine platform that combines a recombinant protein approach, nanoparticle technology, and its patented Matrix-M adjuvant to enhance the immune response.