Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX) Share Price Breaks Above 50-Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Key Points

• Vaxcyte shares rose above their 50-day moving average, reaching $63.14 and last trading at $62.61, compared with a 50-day average of $61.59.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive: seven analysts rate the stock a Buy, one a Hold and one a Sell, producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $110.50 price target.
• Insiders sold 74,692 shares worth approximately $5.3 million over the past 90 days, while institutional investors own a substantial 96.78% of the company.

Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX - Get Free Report)'s stock price crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $61.59 and traded as high as $63.14. Vaxcyte shares last traded at $62.61, with a volume of 2,013,762 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Vaxcyte from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Zacks Research raised shares of Vaxcyte from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Vaxcyte from $133.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vaxcyte in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Vaxcyte from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vaxcyte currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $110.50.

Vaxcyte Stock Up 1.9%

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $61.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $56.85. The firm has a market cap of $9.32 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.21 and a beta of 1.23.

Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($1.97) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($2.06) by $0.09. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($1.22) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Vaxcyte, Inc. will post -7.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Vaxcyte news, insider Harpreet Dhaliwal sold 17,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.00, for a total transaction of $935,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 76,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,221,580. This trade represents a 18.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Andrew Guggenhime sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.89, for a total transaction of $538,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 105,176 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,667,934.64. The trade was a 8.68% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 74,692 shares of company stock valued at $5,308,175. 3.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Vaxcyte in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,270,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in shares of Vaxcyte during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,650,000. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Vaxcyte by 18.1% during the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 27,151 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,539,000 after acquiring an additional 4,170 shares in the last quarter. BG Investment Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vaxcyte during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,075,000. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vaxcyte in the third quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors own 96.78% of the company's stock.

About Vaxcyte

Vaxcyte, Inc NASDAQ: PCVX is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing vaccines designed to protect against serious bacterial diseases. The company is headquartered in San Carlos, California, and uses its proprietary cell-free protein synthesis and conjugation technologies to develop vaccine candidates intended to provide broad and durable immune protection.

Vaxcyte's lead programs target pneumococcal disease, an infection caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae.

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