Guggenheim Reaffirms Buy Rating for Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX)

Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by research analysts at Guggenheim in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $160.00 price target on the stock. Guggenheim’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 119.12% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on PCVX. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Vaxcyte in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $135.00 target price for the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of Vaxcyte in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Vaxcyte presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $147.50.

Vaxcyte Stock Performance

PCVX stock opened at $73.02 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $82.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $94.29. The firm has a market cap of $9.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.87 and a beta of 1.02. Vaxcyte has a 1 year low of $58.10 and a 1 year high of $121.06.

Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The company reported ($1.02) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.16) by $0.14. On average, research analysts predict that Vaxcyte will post -4.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Andrew Guggenhime sold 8,000 shares of Vaxcyte stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.78, for a total value of $710,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 109,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,720,610.98. This trade represents a 6.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Teri Loxam sold 6,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.11, for a total value of $531,937.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,175 shares in the company, valued at $610,664.25. The trade was a 46.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 54,250 shares of company stock worth $4,550,258. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vaxcyte

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vaxcyte during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Vaxcyte by 188.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new stake in Vaxcyte during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Vaxcyte by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 742 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Vaxcyte by 77,500.0% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 775 shares during the period. 96.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Vaxcyte

Vaxcyte, Inc, a clinical-stage biotechnology vaccine company, develops novel protein vaccines to prevent or treat bacterial infectious diseases. Its lead vaccine candidate is VAX-24, a 24-valent investigational pneumococcal conjugate vaccine for the prevention of invasive pneumococcal disease. The company also develops VAX-31 to protect against emerging strains and to help address antibiotic resistance; VAX-A1, a novel conjugate vaccine candidate to prevent disease caused by Group A Streptococcus; VAX-PG, a novel protein vaccine candidate targeting keystone pathogen responsible for periodontitis; and VAX-GI to prevent Shigella, a bacterial illness.