What happened
Shares of Novavax (NVAX 2.95%) jumped 8.7% as of the market close on Monday. The solid gain appears to be the result of investors recognizing that the sell-off late last week was overdone.
The vaccine stock initially soared more than 30% earlier last week. However, a disappointing outlook from Moderna (MRNA 3.28%) and Pfizer's (PFE 0.23%) announcement of positive results for its COVID-19 pill weighed on Novavax's share price on Thursday and Friday. The stock ended the week up only 7%.
Image source: Getty Images.
So what
Investors are probably right to think that the sell-off late last week went too far. Moderna's supply chain challenges don't negatively impact Novavax. Pfizer's COVID-19 pill (assuming it wins authorizations) likely won't have a significant effect on Novavax over the near term, either.
It is possible, though, that Novavax might face a headwind related to Pfizer's pill down the road. Governments could choose to reduce their COVID-19 vaccine purchases in a post-pandemic world with a highly effective oral therapy available.
Still, Novavax's fortunes, for now, depend much more heavily on its own regulatory successes than they do with anything connected with Moderna or Pfizer.
Now what
Speaking of regulatory successes, Novavax hopes to have several of them in the near future. The company awaits reviews of its filings for its COVID-19 vaccine in the U.K., Europe, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. It also could soon secure Emergency Use Listing for its vaccine from the World Health Organization. Novavax believes that it's on track to file for U.S. Emergency Use Authorization by the end of 2021.
