Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) shares skidded on Wednesday, after reporting fourth-quarter revenue and earnings that missed Wall Street’s estimates and reiterated plans to cut costs as it fights to stay afloat.
Still, the vaccine maker narrowed its losses in the quarter from the same period a year ago, even as demand for the biotech company’s Covid vaccine – its only marketable product – and other products that combat the virus continue to plummet worldwide.
In the fourth quarter, Novavax reported a loss per share of $1.44 vs. an expected loss of 45 cents, on revenues of $291.3 million vs. $322 million expected.
The company posted a net loss of $178.4 million, or $1.44 per share, for the quarter. That compares to a net loss of $182.2 million, or $2.28 per share, for the year-earlier quarter.
Novavax generated fourth-quarter sales of $291.3 million, down from $357.4 million in the year-earlier period.
But Novavax CEO John Jacobs said the company had some revenue move from 2023 into 2024 due to the timing of some advance purchase agreements for doses of its Covid shot.
Novavax expects full-year 2024 revenue to come in between $800 million and $1 billion. That forecast reflects an expected $500 million to $600 million in revenue from dose deliver schedules from advanced purchase agreements and $300 million to $400 million from commercial market product sales, royalties and other revenue from the company’s “partner-related activity.”
NVAX shares dumped $1.78, or 29.6%, early Wednesday to $4.24.
