(Reuters) -Novavax raised its annual revenue forecast for the third time this year on Thursday, banking on milestone payments from vaccine supply and licensing deals such as with Japan's Takeda Pharmaceuticals.
The upbeat outlook comes as the Gaithersburg, Maryland-based biotech faces persistent investor pressure over underwhelming sales of its COVID-19 vaccine, Nuvaxovid. Its second-largest shareholder, hedge fund Shah Capital, had last month called on the board to consider a sale of the company, citing a third consecutive year of weak COVID vaccine sales.
Meanwhile, the company is focused on partnerships with firms such as France's Sanofi, Takeda and Serum Institute of India that cover marketing of Nuvaxovid and development of other vaccine candidates, as it eyes profitability by 2027.
"This year we have relaunched the company with a focus on R&D and partnerships intended to position us well for long-term growth and profitability," CEO John Jacobs said.
The company expects its 2025 adjusted revenue to be between $1.04 billion and $1.06 billion, compared with a range of $1 billion to $1.05 billion earlier. This excludes Sanofi sales and royalties.
Earlier this month, Novavax completed the transfer of U.S. and EU marketing authorization for Nuvaxovid to Sanofi, triggering a milestone payment of $50 million in the fourth quarter.
Total revenue for the third quarter came in at $70 million, topping analysts' average estimate of $42.13 million, according to data compiled by LSEG.
Net loss for the quarter ended September 30 widened to $202 million from $121 million a year earlier, as the company recorded non-cash charges of $126 million, including $97 million related to a Maryland site consolidation announced last month.
(Reporting by Siddhi Mahatole and Mariam Sunny in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo)
