Zacks Research Downgrades Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) to Hold

Posted by Stanley Muller on Aug 8th, 2026

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX – Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on NVAX. B. Riley Financial reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Novavax in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Novavax in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Novavax from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Novavax in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Novavax from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.00.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on Novavax

Novavax Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NVAX opened at $7.95 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a PE ratio of -5.23 and a beta of 2.46. Novavax has a 52-week low of $6.20 and a 52-week high of $11.97. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $8.72 and a 200 day moving average of $8.97.

Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.32) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.38) by $0.06. Novavax had a negative return on equity of 14.82% and a negative net margin of 59.87%.The business had revenue of $56.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $52.51 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.62 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 76.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Novavax will post -0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Novavax during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. increased its stake in Novavax by 917.3% in the 1st quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 4,242 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 3,825 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased 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 worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,229 shares during the period. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Novavax in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in Novavax in the third quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.04% of the company’s stock.

More Novavax News

Here are the key news stories impacting Novavax this week:

Positive Sentiment: Novavax reported a second-quarter adjusted loss of $0.32 per share, better than the expected $0.38 loss, while revenue of $56.7 million exceeded estimates of approximately $52.5 million. NVAX Q2 Earnings & Sales Beat Estimates, 2026 Sales Outlook Raised
Positive Sentiment: The company raised its full-year 2026 adjusted revenue framework to $235 million-$275 million from $230 million-$270 million and reduced combined GAAP research and development and selling, general and administrative expense guidance by $10 million at the midpoint. Novavax Raises 2026 Outlook After Q2 Beat
Positive Sentiment: Novavax said completion of its manufacturing technology transfer to Sanofi is expected in mid-2027, potentially triggering a $75 million milestone payment. Sanofi also plans to advance discussions with regulators regarding timing for its Phase 3 COVID-19 and influenza combination-vaccine trial. Novavax Lifts Annual Revenue Forecast
Neutral Sentiment: Novavax ended June with approximately $724 million in cash, cash equivalents, marketable securities and restricted cash. It also highlighted partner-led Matrix-M projects and plans to move its C. difficile vaccine program into clinical development as early as 2027. Novavax Reports Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results
Negative Sentiment: Revenue fell approximately 76% from the prior-year quarter to $56.7 million, product sales were only $19 million, and Novavax posted a $53 million net loss versus $107 million of net income a year earlier. The results underscore the company’s dependence on licensing revenue and milestone payments as vaccine demand wanes. Novavax Q2 Revenue Falls 76 Percent

About Novavax

(Get Free Report)

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.