Novavax Inc (NASDAQ:NVAX) is trading higher Friday after the World Health Organization issued emergency use listing for its NVX-CoV2373 COVID-19 vaccine.
The vaccine, Covovax, is the Serum Institute of India's version of Novavax's COVID-19 vaccine under licence from Novavax.
The emergency use listing procedure assesses the quality, safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines and is a prerequisite for COVAX vaccine supply. It also allows countries to expedite their own regulatory approval to import and administer COVID-19 vaccines.
Following the Covovax evaluation, the WHO determined that the vaccine meets its standards for protection against COVID-19.
"Even with new variants emerging, vaccines remain one of the most effective tools to protect people against serious illness and death from SARS-COV-2," said Mariângela Simão, WHO assistant-director general for access to medicines and health products.
"This listing aims to increase access particularly in lower-income countries, 41 of which have still not been able to vaccinate 10% of their populations, while 98 countries have not reached 40%."
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Novavax is a biotechnology company that develops vaccines. The company works in the clinical stage of development with a focus on delivering novel products that prevent a broad range of diseases.
NVAX Price Action: Novavax has traded as high as $331.68 and as low as $107.08 over a 52-week period.
The stock was up 4.05% at $202.81 at time of publication.
Photo: Maryland GovPics from Flickr.
