Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – What’s Next?

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX) shares saw strong trading volume on Tuesday . 3,015,795 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 34% from the previous session’s volume of 4,539,189 shares.The stock last traded at $11.13 and had previously closed at $9.76.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 price target on shares of Novavax in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. B. Riley reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $26.00 price target (up previously from $23.00) on shares of Novavax in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Novavax from $31.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.83.

Novavax Stock Down 11.3 %

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $8.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.24. The stock has a market cap of $1.54 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.25 and a beta of 2.07.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.76) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by $0.07. The company had revenue of $84.51 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $65.80 million. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 54.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted ($1.26) EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Novavax, Inc. will post -1.44 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Novavax

In other news, Director Rachel K. King sold 4,150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.02, for a total value of $37,433.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 14,770 shares in the company, valued at $133,225.40. This represents a 21.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director James F. Young sold 5,400 shares of Novavax stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.00, for a total value of $43,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 51,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $414,080. The trade was a 9.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,150 shares of company stock valued at $119,641 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novavax

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Amalgamated Bank raised its stake in Novavax by 26.9% during the 2nd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 4,887 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 1,036 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Novavax by 38.1% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 5,790 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 1,598 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Novavax by 3,538.8% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 12,299 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $155,000 after buying an additional 11,961 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Novavax during the third quarter worth approximately $158,000. Finally, Algert Global LLC purchased a new position in Novavax in the second quarter valued at about $161,000. 53.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Novavax

Novavax, Inc, a biotechnology company, that promotes improved health by discovering, developing, and commercializing vaccines to protect against serious infectious diseases. It offers vaccine platform that combines a recombinant protein approach, nanoparticle technology, and its patented Matrix-M adjuvant to enhance the immune response.