JPMorgan analyst Eric Joseph slashed his price target on Novavax by more than $100, to $27 per share.
Novavax Inc. (NVAX) shares moved sharply lower Thursday after analysts at JPMorgan lowered their rating and price target on the drugmaker following its decision to slash near-term sales forecasts.
JPMorgan analyst Eric Joseph cut his rating on the stock to ‘underweight’, from ‘neutral’, while slashing his price target by more than $100, to $27 per share.
Last month, Novavax pruned its full-year revenue forecast and warned that it doesn’t expect to sell any more of its Covid vaccines in the United States this year following a wider-than-expected third quarter loss of $6.53 per share.
Novavax halved its 2022 sales forecast to between $2 billion and $2.3 billion, citing the late entry of its Covid vaccine to a glutted domestic market, adding it doesn’t expect a new order this year from the World Health Organization-backed COVAX facility, as government buyers work through supply purchased earlier in the year.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommended granting Emergency Use Authorization for the group’s Covid vaccine — known as NVX-CoV2373 — to patients over the age of eighteen in early June, adding to previous authorizations given to Pfizer (PFE) , Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Moderna (MRNA) .
Pfizer, in fact, said sales of both its Comirnaty vaccine and Paxlovid oral treatment should combine for around $54 billion this year.
Novavax shares were marked 5.7% lower in pre-market trading Thursday to indicate an opening bell price of $24.40 each, a move that would extend the stock’s year-to-date decline to around 82%.
