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Why Is Novavax (NVAX) Down 11.7% Since Last Earnings Report?

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It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Novavax (NVAX - Free Report) . Shares have lost about 11.7% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Novavax due for a breakout? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at its most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers.

Novavax's Q1 Earnings and Sales Fall Short of Estimates

Novavax reported earnings of $2.56 per share for first-quarter 2022, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.33. In the year-ago quarter, NVAX had posted a loss of $3.05 per share. This quarter under review is NVAX’s first profitable quarter.

Revenues for the quarter were $704 million, up 57.4% year over year. Revenues missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $878.1 million.

Quarter in Detail

During the first quarter, NVAX generated $586.0 million as product sales from NVX-CoV2373, its protein-based COVID-19 vaccine. This quarter is the first time when Novavax recorded revenues from its product sales. NVAX also recorded $19.0 million of revenues from royalties and adjuvant sales to license partners.

Novavax’s grant revenues declined 77.8% year over year to $99 million for the same period as it materially completed the activities required under the agreements with the U.S. Government.

For the reported quarter, research and development expenses were $383 million, down 35.3% year over year. This decline was attributable to lower clinical development activities for NVX-CoV2373 as well as lower manufacturing costs for the vaccine incurred during the quarter.

General and administrative expenses rose 51.9% year over year to $96 million. The rise in expenses was on account of activities to support the commercial launch of NVX-CoV2373.

As of Mar 31, 2022, Novavax had $1.6 billion of cash and cash equivalents compared with $1.5 billion as of Dec 31, 2021.

2022 Guidance

Novavax expects total revenues for the full year between $4 billion and $5 billion.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

It turns out, fresh estimates have trended downward during the past month.

The consensus estimate has shifted -6.35% due to these changes.

VGM Scores

At this time, Novavax has a great Growth Score of A, a grade with the same score on the momentum front. Following the exact same course, the stock was allocated a grade of A on the value side, putting it in the top quintile for this investment strategy.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of A. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Outlook

Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. Notably, Novavax has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.

Performance of an Industry Player

Novavax belongs to the Zacks Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry. Another stock from the same industry, Qiagen (QGEN - Free Report) , has gained 4.5% over the past month. More than a month has passed since the company reported results for the quarter ended March 2022.

Qiagen reported revenues of $628.39 million in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +10.8%. EPS of $0.80 for the same period compares with $0.66 a year ago.

Qiagen is expected to post earnings of $0.45 per share for the current quarter, representing a year-over-year change of -32.8%. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed -1.7%.

Qiagen has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) based on the overall direction and magnitude of estimate revisions. Additionally, the stock has a VGM Score of A.


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