As the race to identify and bring a new coronavirus vaccine to market heats up, investors in the biotechnology sector should appreciate that this is an international endeavor. In this light a pivotal development in Europe for Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) should provide encouragement to NVAX stockholders.
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The company’s shareholders were undoubtedly in need of some good news, as the Novavax share price fell on 11 and 12 August. Fortunately, a headline-grabbing move with the UK government seems to arrest the stock’s decline.
Sometimes it just takes a catalyst for the bulls to trigger a share price recovery. This particular catalyst could not only benefit NVAX investors but also the global community as it leads to the discovery of an effective Covid-19 vaccine.
A closer look at NVAX file
The rise of NVAX stock in 2020 is fierce. While the launch of Covid-19 caused a lot of stock crater this year, it only seems to have increased the NVAX stock price.
If you can believe it, NVAX stock is trading at $ 4.50 at the beginning of the year. That is a far cry from where the stocks are trading today. As of August 10, NVAX had traded the entire round up to $ 178.51 per share.
However, a two-day share price slide then occurred in which NVAX stock dropped to $ 124.42. A major agreement for fax development put an end to that decline, though, and NVAX shares settled on August 14 at $ 146.51.
Looking back over the years, we can see that NVAX shares have traded above $ 200 more than once. If the bulls can maintain their momentum, it is thought that NVAX could pick up $ 200 again in the coming months.
A catalyst across the pond
What recently took place in the UK is an example of textbooks why investors should pay attention not only to local news but also to international developments.
Specifically, Novavax signed an agreement known as a Heads of Terms with the UK government. Under that agreement, the UK government will purchase 60 million doses of Novavax’s Coved-19 vaccine candidate, named NVX-CoV2373.
In addition, Novavax will be working with the UK Government in the third quarter of 2020 to work on a Phase III study to assess the effectiveness of NVX-CoV2373 on the UK population. This will be a double-blind, randomized trial involving about 9000 adults.
“The trial will evaluate the ability of NVX-CoV2373 to protect against symptomatic COVID-19 disease, as well as evaluate anti-antibodies and T-cell responses,” Novavax said.
As for the 60 million doses of NVX-CoV2373, Novavax hopes to deliver them as early as the first quarter of 2021.
Stay busy
Needless to say, Novavax now has a lot on its plate. This biotech company, which was rarely discussed among traders before 2020, is now being put in the spotlight and the pressure is on.
Keep in mind that Novavax already has a deal in place with the US government. In it, the company agreed to supply 100 million doses of NVX-CoV2373, possibly later this year.
That, between the UK and the US, Novavax is expected to deliver a whopping 160 million doses from its flagship Covid-19 vaccine candidate. Plus, on top of all that, Novavax has agreed to work with it Takeda Pharma (NYSE:THANK YOU) To manufacture and commercialize NVX-CoV2373 in Japan.
Is this too much for Novavax? Only time will tell whether the company can keep up with the intense demand for its Covid-19 vaccine candidate. But if Novavax’s biggest problem is having too many orders, that’s not a bad problem to have.
Underline on Novavax
Unfortunately, the recent dip in the NVAX share price probably shook out some traders. If anything, it was a chance to raise more shares.
Novavax will be extremely busy in 2020 and 2021, but that should be perfect with the company’s investors. After all, busy business is typically a profitable business, and hopefully that will be the case with Novavax.
David Moadel has delivered compelling content – and crosses the line of opportunity – on behalf of Crush the Street, Market Realist, TalkMarkets, Finom Group, Benzinga, and (of course) InvestorPlace.com. He also serves as the lead analyst and market researcher for Portfolio Wealth Global and hosts the popular financial YouTube channel Looking at the Markets. As of this writing, David Moadel did not hold any position in any of the said securities.
