Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) Stock Price Up 11.6% – Here’s Why

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX) shares rose 11.6% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $10.36 and last traded at $10.28. Approximately 2,581,551 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 47% from the average daily volume of 4,872,616 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.21.

Novavax News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Novavax this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Novavax saw unusually heavy call-option buying, with traders purchasing 21,279 calls versus a typical 14,187, suggesting some investors are positioning for more upside.
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised multiple earnings estimates for Novavax across 2026 through 2028, including higher forecasts for FY2026, FY2027, FY2028, and several quarterly periods, signaling improving long-term profit expectations.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent FDA-related headlines boosted sentiment after advisers were set to consider updating COVID-19 vaccines to target the newer XFG subvariant, which helped drive a strong rally in NVAX earlier in the week. Why Novavax (NVAX) Stock Is Trading Up Today
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no reported short positions and no meaningful change in days-to-cover, offering little new signal for traders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on NVAX. Wall Street Zen lowered Novavax from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 23rd. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Novavax from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. HC Wainwright boosted their price target on Novavax from $11.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Novavax in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Novavax from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novavax currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $12.13.

Novavax Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.79 and a beta of 2.37. The business has a fifty day moving average of $8.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $8.32.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.25) by $0.19. The business had revenue of $118.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.81 million. Novavax had a negative return on equity of 14.82% and a negative net margin of 14.73%.The firm’s revenue was down 79.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.93 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Novavax, Inc. will post -0.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Novavax

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Novavax during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 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 during the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Novavax by 34.9% in the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,746 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,229 shares during the period. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Novavax in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in Novavax in the 3rd quarter valued at $64,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 53.04% of the company’s stock.

Novavax Company Profile

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.