Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX) Sees Large Volume Increase on Analyst Upgrade

Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX) saw an uptick in trading volume on Tuesday after Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on the stock from $110.00 to $122.00. Needham & Company LLC currently has a buy rating on the stock. Approximately 1,142,393 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 21% from the previous session’s volume of 1,454,975 shares. The stock last traded at $65.3120 and had previously closed at $73.82.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on PCVX. Zacks Research upgraded Vaxcyte from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Vaxcyte from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Vaxcyte from $133.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vaxcyte in a research 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 note on Saturday, August 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $108.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vaxcyte

In related news, insider Harpreet S. Dhaliwal sold 17,000 shares of Vaxcyte stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.00, for a total value of $935,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 76,756 shares in the company, valued at $4,221,580. The trade was a 18.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Grant Pickering sold 16,198 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.63, for a total value of $901,094.74. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 453,247 shares in the company, valued at $25,214,130.61. This represents a 3.45% 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. In the last quarter, insiders sold 92,890 shares of company stock worth $6,320,569. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

More Vaxcyte News

Here are the key news stories impacting Vaxcyte this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vaxcyte reported a positive Phase 3 result for its VAX-31 pneumococcal vaccine candidate in adults. The late-stage win strengthens the program’s regulatory and commercial prospects and prompted bullish commentary that the company had reached a potential “blue-sky” outcome. Vaxcyte leaps on positive Phase III trial of VAX-31
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive following the clinical update. Needham assigned Vaxcyte a $122 price target, while BTIG reaffirmed its Buy rating, indicating substantial anticipated upside if VAX-31 continues to advance successfully. Vaxcyte given new price target at Needham
• Positive Sentiment: The company priced a financing consisting of $500 million of common stock and pre-funded warrants plus $500 million of 1.50% convertible senior notes due 2032. The proceeds should provide substantial funding for clinical development and commercialization preparations, while the relatively low coupon limits near-term interest expense. Vaxcyte announces pricing of concurrent offerings
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity was unusually heavy, with investors purchasing 8,093 put contracts—about 259% of typical volume—suggesting increased hedging or bearish speculation, but not necessarily a change in the company’s fundamentals.
• Negative Sentiment: The equity issuance, pre-funded warrants and potentially convertible notes will increase the share count or create future dilution. The financing was priced at $64 per share, below the stock’s recent trading levels, contributing to selling pressure despite the positive trial news.
• Neutral Sentiment: Chief Accounting Officer Elvia Cowan and EVP Jim Wassil sold 19,000 and 18,000 shares, respectively, under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans. The transactions reduce their holdings but were scheduled sales and therefore provide limited insight into current management sentiment.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vaxcyte

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PCVX. First Light Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Vaxcyte by 143.4% during the 2nd quarter. First Light Asset Management LLC now owns 345,157 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,064,000 after purchasing an additional 203,373 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP acquired a new stake in shares of Vaxcyte in the second quarter valued at about $1,906,000. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in shares of Vaxcyte by 72.8% in the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 560 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in Vaxcyte by 4.3% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 33,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,962,000 after buying an additional 1,394 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nykredit A S purchased a new stake in Vaxcyte during the second quarter worth about $280,000. 96.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vaxcyte Price Performance

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $59.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.49. The company has a market capitalization of $9.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.78 and a beta of 1.23.

Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($1.97) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.06) by $0.09. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($1.22) earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Vaxcyte, Inc. will post -8.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Vaxcyte

Vaxcyte, Inc (NASDAQ: PCVX) is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing vaccines to help prevent serious bacterial infections. The company uses its cell-free protein synthesis and advanced conjugation technologies to design vaccines intended to provide broad and durable protection while addressing limitations of existing vaccine products.

Vaxcyte’s lead programs are pneumococcal conjugate vaccine candidates, including VAX-24 and VAX-31, which are designed to target a broad range of pneumococcal serotypes.