Vaxart Inc ( VXRT ) shares are trading higher in Monday’s after-hours session after the company provided business and cash runway updates.

What Happened: Vaxart ( VXRT ), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing a range of oral recombinant vaccines, announced Monday that proceeds from a recent offering combined with reimbursements under its Project NextGen award are expected to extend the company’s cash runway into 2026.

“The past week was especially important for Vaxart ( VXRT ), because the combination of receiving one of the largest Project NextGen awards from BARDA and closing our $40 million financing from leading institutional investors significantly strengthened the Company,” said Steven Lo, CEO of Vaxart ( VXRT ).

“These notable achievements enable us to pursue our goal of creating transformative oral pill vaccine candidates representing multibillion-dollar market opportunities and offering the world a better way to protect against disease.”

Vaxart ( VXRT ) said it plans to use funds from the award to conduct a 10,000-subject Phase 2b comparative study evaluating its oral pill COVID-19 vaccine candidate against an FDA-approved mRNA vaccine comparator. Vaxart ( VXRT ) noted it could initiate enrollment in the trial as early as the summer of 2024.

Vaxart ( VXRT ) also announced that it remains on track to receive feedback from the FDA in mid-2024 on potential correlates of protection for norovirus. The company said it will then determine the best way to progress its norovirus program.

Vaxart ( VXRT ) noted it continues to develop earlier-stage programs, including seasonal influenza and human papillomavirus. The company said it has also begun efforts on avian flu in light of the recent bird flu outbreaks.

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VXRT Price Action: At publication Monday, Vaxart ( VXRT ) shares were up 3.67% at 54 cents in after-hours trading, according to Benzinga Pro.