Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX) Receives Average Rating of "Buy" from Analysts

Shares of Vaxcyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCVX - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of "Buy" from the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $136.50.

PCVX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Vaxcyte in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Vaxcyte from $138.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Vaxcyte from $157.00 to $137.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Vaxcyte to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Vaxcyte in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vaxcyte news, COO Jim Wassil sold 8,000 shares of Vaxcyte stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.22, for a total value of $689,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 205,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,735,022.90. The trade was a 3.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have sold 32,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,638,800 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 3.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vaxcyte

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Vaxcyte by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,307 shares of the company's stock valued at $271,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the period. Bridgefront Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Vaxcyte by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Bridgefront Capital LLC now owns 4,244 shares of the company's stock valued at $347,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Vaxcyte by 188.4% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 398 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd increased its holdings in Vaxcyte by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd now owns 18,400 shares of the company's stock worth $1,506,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Vaxcyte during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.78% of the company's stock.

Vaxcyte Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PCVX traded up $1.53 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $30.65. 1,724,222 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,218,023. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.95 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.66 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a 50-day moving average of $61.81 and a 200-day moving average of $83.64. Vaxcyte has a 52-week low of $27.66 and a 52-week high of $121.06.

Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The company reported ($1.02) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.16) by $0.14. Analysts expect that Vaxcyte will post -4.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.