Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) Stock Falls 12.9% – Time to Sell?

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX) traded down 12.9% on Thursday. The company traded as low as $10.02 and last traded at $9.59. 4,927,966 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 5% from the average session volume of 5,174,835 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.01.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on NVAX shares. Citigroup reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $8.00 price target (up from $7.00) on shares of Novavax in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Zacks Research lowered Novavax from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen raised Novavax from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Novavax in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Novavax has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.14.

Novavax Stock Down 9.3%

The company has a market capitalization of $1.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.57 and a beta of 2.44. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $10.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $9.29.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.32) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.38) by $0.06. Novavax had a negative net margin of 59.87% and a negative return on equity of 14.82%. The business had revenue of $56.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $52.51 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.62 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 76.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Novavax, Inc. will post -0.38 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novavax

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. lifted its position in Novavax by 917.3% during the 1st quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 4,242 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 3,825 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Novavax by 34.9% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,746 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 1,229 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of Novavax by 292.5% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,353 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 3,244 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novavax during the 2nd quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Novavax in the 1st quarter valued at about $83,000. 53.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novavax Company Profile

Novavax, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing vaccines for infectious diseases. The company uses recombinant protein nanoparticle technology and its proprietary Matrix-M adjuvant to develop vaccines designed to stimulate targeted immune responses.

Novavax’s principal commercial product is Nuvaxovid, also known as the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine, a protein-based vaccine developed to help prevent COVID-19. The vaccine has been authorized or approved in various markets, subject to local regulatory requirements, and the company has worked with governments, public-health organizations, and pharmaceutical partners to support its distribution internationally.

Founded in 1987, Novavax is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland.