Novavax will lay off about 25 percent of its workforce and consolidate its facilities as part of a global restructuring to reduce costs, the drugmaker said May 9.
At the end of 2022, the COVID-19 vaccine maker employed just under 2,000 people, according to Bloomberg.
Novovax also plans to cut selling, general and administrative expenses, along with research and development costs, by about 40 percent to 50 percent compared to 2022.
In the first quarter of 2023, Novavax reported $81 million in total revenue, down from $704 million in the same quarter a year prior. The company attributed this change to an emerging seasonal demand pattern for COVID-19 vaccines. Overall, the drugmaker reported a net loss of $294 million this quarter, compared to a net gain of $203 million in the first quarter of 2022.
"Reducing our workforce has been a difficult decision, but we believe it was necessary to better align our infrastructure and scale to the endemic COVID opportunity," John Jacobs, Novavax's president and CEO, said in a news release. "Though we still have substantial challenges ahead of us in 2023, we are encouraged by the progress we have made in the last quarter and are determined to continue executing on our top priorities."