Today, shares of Vaxxinity (NASDAQ:VAXX) closed higher by 18% after coming public just four days ago on Nov. 11. VAXX stock debuted at $13 per share, trading as high as $22.77 on its opening day before cooling down. After today’s price bump, shares of VAXX stock are hovering in the $16 range.
Vaxxinity is a biotech company that seeks to democratize healthcare by providing efficient vaccines to underserved parties. It currently has two candidates in U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Phase 2 testing: UB-311 for Alzheimer’s disease and UB-612 for Covid-19.
During the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Vaxxinity reallocated its resources in an effort to combat the disease. Its current vaccine candidate aims to target specific proteins that the virus needs to attach to human cells and replicate. The company is also developing a second Covid-19 candidate called UB-612A.
While its business is certainly relevant, should you invest in VAXX stock? Let’s take a further look into some key company highlights.
VAXX Stock: What You Need to Know
- Vaxxinity filed its updated S-1 prospectus with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Nov. 5.
- The prospectus outlined Vaxxinity’s plan to distribute 6.7 million shares at a price range of $14-$16.
- Hours before the IPO, Vaxxinity’s management announced that they would be downsizing the IPO price to $13 per share. The company also distributed only 6 million shares.
- Vaxxinity’s current pipeline covers five chronic diseases: Covid-19, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, migraines and hypercholesterolemia.
- Its technology uses “synthetic peptides to mimic and optimally combine biological epitopes in order to selectively activate the immune system, producing antibodies against only the desired targets, including self-antigens, making possible the safe and effective treatment of chronic diseases by vaccines.”
- Vaxxinity reported revenue of $440,000 in the six months ending June 30, 2020. Its net loss in the same period was $10 million.
- Vaxxinity stated that it expects proceeds of $89.7 million from its IPO. This figure includes the assumption that underwriters exercise a 30-day option to buy an additional 900,000 shares.
- Investors should be prepared for volatility, as a majority of Vaxxinity’s drugs are in Phase 1 trials or earlier stages. A rejection of a vaccine or other clinical setback could have major implications for the stock.
- The company is expected to have enough cash on hand to sustain operations until 2024.
- The joint underwriters for Vaxxinity’s IPO were Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) and Evercore Group (NYSE:EVR).
On the date of publication, Eddie Pan did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
