Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) Trading 5.3% Higher – Here’s Why

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX)’s share price traded up 5.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $9.91 and last traded at $9.7490. Approximately 1,125,037 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 4,654,066 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.26.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 price target on shares of Novavax in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Novavax from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research cut Novavax from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Novavax in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Novavax from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $14.00.

Novavax Stock Up 8.0%

The firm has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.66 and a beta of 2.45. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $8.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.95.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.32) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 period last year, the company posted $0.62 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 76.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Novavax, Inc. will post -0.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Novavax in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of Novavax by 917.3% during the first quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 4,242 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 3,825 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 1,229 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Novavax in the 2nd quarter worth $52,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in Novavax in the 3rd quarter valued at $64,000. 53.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.