Novavax quarterly revenue misses estimate on weak COVID vaccine sales

(Reuters) – Novavax (NASDAQ:) on Thursday cut its revenue forecast for 2024 as it anticipated lower sales of its COVID-19 vaccine, including the company’s updated shot for the fall season targeting the JN.1 variant.

The vaccine maker now expects $275 million to $375 million in product sales for the year, compared with its earlier forecast of between $400 million and $600 million, which the company said also included royalties and other revenue.

Of this, the company has already recorded $100 million in the first half of the year. Novavax has also sought authorization for its fall-season COVID shot from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency.

The company has struggled to sell its protein-based COVID vaccines and, in turn, failed to make a significant dent in the market share of key players like Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna (NASDAQ:).

Novavax had signed a licensing deal worth at least $1.2 billion with French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi (NASDAQ:) for its COVID vaccine in exchange for a stake in the U.S. biotech firm.

The deal helped Novavax remove the warning notice in February last year that raised doubts about its ability to remain in business, while it boosted Sanofi’s plans to co-develop a combination of its influenza and COVID vaccine.

Gaithersburg, Maryland-based Novavax also cut its full-year forecast range for total revenue to $700 million to $800 million, from between $970 million and $1.17 billion, which it gave in May following its deal with Sanofi.

The new forecast included around $425 million in upfront payment, royalty and other revenue, compared with the $570 million it was expecting under the deal in May.

Novavax recorded $415.5 million in total revenue in the second quarter, lower than the average of analyst estimate of $458.6 million, according to LSEG data.

The company’s profit of 99 cents per share also missed analysts’ estimates of $1.64.