Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the nine ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $11.25.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Novavax from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Novavax in a report on Monday, December 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Novavax in a research report on Friday, October 24th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $18.00 target price for the company. B. Riley restated a “buy” rating and issued a $16.00 target price (down from $18.00) on shares of Novavax in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on Novavax from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Novavax

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Novavax by 11.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 12,755 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $111,000 after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in shares of Novavax by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 155,743 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,350,000 after buying an additional 1,529 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in Novavax by 25.8% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 7,896 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 1,617 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in Novavax by 2.3% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 78,048 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $492,000 after buying an additional 1,718 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Novavax by 5.5% during the second quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 34,095 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $215,000 after buying an additional 1,766 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.04% of the company’s stock.

Novavax Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NVAX opened at $9.82 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $7.28 and its 200 day moving average is $7.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.93, a quick ratio of 2.24 and a current ratio of 2.27. The company has a market capitalization of $1.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.49 and a beta of 2.37. Novavax has a fifty-two week low of $5.01 and a fifty-two week high of $10.64.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.25) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.08) by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $70.45 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.63 million. Novavax had a negative return on equity of 217.02% and a net margin of 32.10%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.76) EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Novavax will post -1.46 earnings per share for the current year.

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.