Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) Stock Falls 9.4% – Should You Sell?

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX)’s share price was down 9.4% during trading on Thursday. The stock traded as low as $9.15 and last traded at $9.0450. Approximately 3,572,075 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 32% from the average session volume of 5,253,326 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.98.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NVAX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Novavax in a report on Monday, November 2nd. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $16.00 target price (down from $18.00) on shares of Novavax in a research note on Friday, November 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Novavax in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Citigroup restated 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. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Novavax from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.33.

Novavax Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.64 and a beta of 2.65. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $10.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $9.36.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.19) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by $0.16. Novavax had a negative net margin of 18.64% and a negative return on equity of 14.82%. The firm had revenue of $68.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $50.42 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($1.25) EPS. Novavax’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Novavax, Inc. will post -0.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novavax

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. TSP Capital Management Group LLC raised its holdings in Novavax by 0.9% during the third quarter. TSP Capital Management Group LLC now owns 1,432,365 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $15,484,000 after purchasing an additional 13,000 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Novavax during the 2nd quarter valued at $8,004,000. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new position in Novavax during the 1st quarter valued at $4,234,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in Novavax during the 1st quarter valued at $4,049,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Novavax by 37.7% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 409,328 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,332,000 after purchasing an additional 112,009 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 53.04% of the company’s stock.

Novavax Company Profile

Novavax, Inc. is a biotechnology company focused on developing vaccines for infectious diseases. Its technology combines recombinant protein-based vaccine antigens with Matrix-M, a saponin-based adjuvant designed to strengthen the immune response. The company’s best-known product is Nuvaxovid, a protein-based COVID-19 vaccine authorized in the United States and other markets. Novavax also develops additional vaccine candidates, including a combination COVID-19 and influenza vaccine. Founded in 1987 and headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, Novavax serves international markets through regulatory approvals and commercial partnerships.