Clinical-stage biotechnology company Vaxart (NASDAQ:VXRT), as the name implies, is known for developing vaccines. There are other, more famous coronavirus vaccine makers out there, but VXRT stock is cheap and might be worth considering for risk-tolerant investors.
No one is going to claim that Vaxart was the first company to deliver a Covid-19 vaccine to the public. Yet, there’s more than one way to win the vaccine race.
Pharmaceutical companies sometimes make a name for themselves by developing a product that’s different from all the others. Or they at least offer a new angle on an existing product.
Now there’s data that strongly suggests that people want something different when it comes to Covid-19 vaccines. Could this give Vaxart an edge among vaccine makers? Let’s find out — but first, a quick stock-price analysis.
VXRT Stock at a Glance
Since the onset of the novel coronavirus last year, VXRT stock has been on a wild ride. So please, be prepared to accept some risk and only maintain small position sizes if you’re going to invest in this stock.
At various times, this one might or might not be classified as a penny stock — defined by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a stock that trades under $5 per share.
This means that VXRT stock is low-priced, and it’s affordable for most portfolios. It has also been known to suddenly spike in price, so timing is everything when it comes to this stock.
I’ll give you a couple of examples of what I’m talking about. In early June 2020, Vaxart shares were trading at $2 and change. But then, in mid-July, the stock price popped to $17.
We saw something similar happen in January and February of this year, when VXRT stock leaped from $7 to a 52-week high of $24.90.
On April 23, the stock settled slightly above the $5.50 level. The bulls will definitely want to defend this level and prevent Vaxart shares from sliding back into penny-stock territory.
An Easy Pill to Swallow
In case you didn’t get the memo, most people don’t like to be injected with a needle.
They might view it as a necessity, though, as long as Covid-19 is still spreading and there aren’t any alternatives to needles. Still, it’s unpleasant to get an injection and sometimes it can cause discomfort and/or bruising.
For some folks, the thought of getting a Covid-19 vaccine through an injection is so uncomfortable, that they might not get vaccinated at all.
As Vaxart has reported, a national survey of 1,500 Americans over the age of 18, conducted by Quadrant Strategies, revealed that 23% of the respondents said that they don’t plan to get vaccinated.
Yet, nearly one-third those currently refusing to get vaccinated, would get vaccinated if they could take a pill instead of getting an injection.
Overcoming Resistance
Not only that, but 7 in 10 of the respondents said they’d prefer to take a vaccine pill rather than getting injected with a vaccine.
Amid that backdrop, it’s fair to say that Vaxart is well-positioned to capitalize on many people’s resistance to injections. After all, the company specializes in developing orally delivered vaccines.
Vaxart typically produces its vaccines in tablet form. An advantage is that they can be stored and shipped without refrigeration.
Moreover, Vaxart’s vaccine tablets can eliminate the risks associated with needle-stick injury. And, as the survey suggests, these tablets can help to overcome some people’s resistance to taking a Covid-19 vaccine.
Not long ago, Vaxart completed its Phase 1 study of the VXA-CoV2-1 oral tablet coronavirus vaccine. The results were encouraging.
Specifically, it was found that VXA-CoV2-1 “induced potent CD8+ T-cell responses that are potentially protective against the original as well as new and emerging Covid-19 strains.”
The Takeaway
Vaxart will never be known as being first to market with a Covid-19 vaccine. Nevertheless, there’s another way for the company to make its mark.
The company could become known as a first mover in the field of orally administered Covid-19 vaccines. If so, then VXRT might never be a penny stock again.
On the date of publication, neither Louis Navellier nor the InvestorPlace Research Staff member primarily responsible for this article held (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.
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