Novavax Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:NVAX)

Key Points

• Unusual options activity: Traders bought 16,203 call options on NVAX on Tuesday, about a 49% increase over the stock's average daily call volume.
• Institutional buying: Several hedge funds increased positions—Shah Capital now owns 11.51 million shares—and institutional investors collectively hold about 53.04% of Novavax.
• Mixed fundamentals and outlook: NVAX traded at $7.56 (market cap $1.23B); the company reported a quarterly EPS of -$1.25 (missing estimates) but revenue beat, and analysts have a consensus "Hold" with a $11.25 price target.

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders acquired 16,203 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 49% compared to the average daily volume of 10,868 call options.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novavax

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Shah Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Novavax by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Shah Capital Management now owns 11,511,780 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $72,524,000 after buying an additional 379,934 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Novavax by 0.5% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,101,074 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $26,886,000 after acquiring an additional 15,685 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its position in Novavax by 162.6% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,409,734 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $12,222,000 after acquiring an additional 872,987 shares during the period. TSP Capital Management Group LLC increased its stake in Novavax by 3.5% during the second quarter. TSP Capital Management Group LLC now owns 1,399,065 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $8,814,000 after acquiring an additional 46,900 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Novavax by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 918,683 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $7,965,000 after purchasing an additional 15,997 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 53.04% of the company's stock.

Novavax Price Performance

NVAX stock traded up $0.31 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $7.56. The stock had a trading volume of 1,198,791 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,616,414. The stock has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 2.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.93, a quick ratio of 2.24 and a current ratio of 2.27. The company's 50 day moving average price is $7.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $7.57. Novavax has a 1-year low of $5.01 and a 1-year high of $11.55.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.25) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.08) by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $70.45 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.63 million. Novavax had a negative return on equity of 217.02% and a net margin of 32.10%.The business's quarterly revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.76) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Novavax will post -1.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NVAX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on Novavax in a research report on Friday, October 24th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $18.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Novavax from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Novavax from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating and set a $16.00 target price (down from $18.00) on shares of Novavax in a report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Novavax in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novavax has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $11.25.

About Novavax

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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