Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX) Shares Bought by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX - Free Report) by 186.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 52,702 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 34,287 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Vaxcyte were worth $6,022,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Vaxcyte by 68.0% during the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 21,466 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,453,000 after buying an additional 8,685 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Vaxcyte by 61.1% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 22,697 shares of the company's stock worth $2,594,000 after acquiring an additional 8,606 shares during the period. Tri Locum Partners LP purchased a new position in Vaxcyte during the second quarter valued at approximately $8,559,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in Vaxcyte in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,053,000. Finally, Lisanti Capital Growth LLC boosted its position in Vaxcyte by 68.1% in the 3rd quarter. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC now owns 32,515 shares of the company's stock worth $3,715,000 after purchasing an additional 13,175 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.78% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on PCVX shares. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Vaxcyte from $113.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Vaxcyte in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $135.00 target price on the stock. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $140.00 price target on shares of Vaxcyte in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America increased their price target on Vaxcyte from $101.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Vaxcyte in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $145.71.

Vaxcyte Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of Vaxcyte stock traded up $1.44 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $83.30. The stock had a trading volume of 756,277 shares, compared to its average volume of 918,488. The firm has a market cap of $10.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -18.11 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $93.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $92.90. Vaxcyte, Inc. has a 12-month low of $53.83 and a 12-month high of $121.06.

Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported ($0.83) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.10) by $0.27. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.91) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Vaxcyte, Inc. will post -4.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Andrew Guggenhime sold 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.78, for a total value of $710,240.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 109,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,720,610.98. The trade was a 6.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Grant Pickering sold 7,098 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.21, for a total value of $775,172.58. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 138,581 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,134,431.01. This trade represents a 4.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 117,830 shares of company stock valued at $12,383,030 over the last 90 days. 3.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vaxcyte Company Profile

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.