NVAX Stock Price: Novavax Inc drops as big name biotech companies inch closer to EUA for COVID-19 vaccine

NASDAQ:NVAX has been somewhat forgotten in the race for Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) of its COVID-19 vaccine, taking a backseat to some of the biotech giants who are anticipating approval over the next couple of weeks. Novavax dropped 4.08% on Wednesday alongside a broader market selloff as US stimulus talks hit another wall in Congress. Investors do not have much to complain about considering shares are still up nearly 3000% over the past 52-weeks, with more to come in 2021 once its COVID-19 vaccine is approved for distribution. 

Novavax announced it is teaming with UC Davis Health to begin a Stage 3 clinical trial that will hopefully mean that its COVID-19 vaccine candidate NVX-CoV2373 will be approved and ready to be distributed by early to midway through 2021. For its part, Novavax has already secured some massive deals including 1 billion doses for India, whenever the vaccine can be produced. The Maryland-based biotech firm also has deals in place with Australia and Canada, amongst other countries, so 2021 could be lining up as a big year for Novavax, which still only commands a $7 billion market cap. 

NVAX stock news

While Novavax is lagging behind leaders like Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA), early results from its clinical trials had some analysts labelling Novavax as the company to beat in Operation Warp Speed. Pfizer and Moderna will have the first-mover advantage and are already the brands synonymous with ridding the world of COVID-19, but by the end of it, Novavax should be there as well and that is already evident in the large orders it has received.