Novavax (NVAX) reported lower-than-expected Q4 sales of its Covid vaccine late Tuesday and NVAX shares crashed.
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During the December quarter, Novavax sales grew 61% to $357 million. But that fell short of expectations for $383 million, according to FactSet. The company said growth in sales of its Covid vaccine, Nuvaxovid, was offset by declining revenue from grants, royalties and other sources. Nuvaxovid is approved in the US for people 12 years and older as a primary series. It is also used as a booster in adults.
The company also reported a larger-than-expected loss of $2.28 per share. That was down from a loss of $11.18 per share in the period last year, but missed estimates for a loss of $1.10 per share.
The results come as US Covid vaccinations slow. Pfizer‘s (PFE) and Modern‘s (MRNA) Covid shots drove small sales gains in 2022, though sales are expected to decline this year. But it’s important to note that Novavax uses a different way of vaccinating patients. While Pfizer and Moderna’s uptakes rely on messenger RNA platforms, Novavax’s uptake is protein-based.
In today’s stock market, NVAX shares rose 6.8% to end the regular session at 9:26 am. In after-hours trading, shares fell 19.9% close to 7.40.
NVAX Stock: Outlook is murky
Novavax warned that while it plans to fund the development of an updated Covid injection, there is “significant uncertainty” regarding 2023 revenues, funding from the US government and ongoing arbitration.
“To maximize our opportunity and mitigate the significant risks and uncertainties of the COVID-19 market, our goal is to reduce spending, increase our cash career and operate efficiently to best position the business to drive growth at long term,” the company said in its press release.
Novavax believes it has enough capital to fund the operations for at least a year, but warned “substantial doubt exists about our ability to continue for a full year.”
Analysts expect falling sales
NVAX stock analysts expect a loss of $4.99 per share and revenue of $1.26 billion.
That would be in line with Pfizer and Moderna’s expectations. Both companies predict that sales of their Covid vaccines will decrease in 2023. Vaccinations are slowing and the public health emergency in the US is now expected to end in May.
Meanwhile, NVAX stock has a worst-case relative strength score of 1. This puts stocks in the lowest 1% of all stocks when it comes to 12-month performance, according to IBD Digital.
Follow Allison Gatlin on Twitter at @IBD_AGatlin.
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