Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) Trading Up 8.5% – Here’s What Happened
by Sarita Garza · The Markets DailyShares of Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA – Get Free Report) rose 8.5% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $161.96 and last traded at $158.07. Approximately 19,084,286 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 64% from the average session volume of 11,611,695 shares. The stock had previously closed at $145.62.
Key Headlines Impacting Moderna
Here are the key news stories impacting Moderna this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Investors continued to respond favorably to positive late-stage results for intismeran autogene, Moderna’s personalized mRNA cancer vaccine being developed with Merck’s Keytruda. The program is strengthening the view that oncology could become a major long-term growth engine and reduce the company’s dependence on COVID-19 products. Moderna cancer vaccine rally article
- Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and higher price targets helped extend Moderna’s rally, with market coverage emphasizing the potential commercial value of its cancer-vaccine partnership. The stock’s recent recovery reflects a shift toward valuing Moderna on its broader pipeline rather than only on declining COVID-19 vaccine sales. Why Moderna shares are soaring
- Neutral Sentiment: Moderna’s shares have experienced highly volatile trading and a sharp one-month increase, with Thursday’s move reportedly occurring without a new company disclosure. The momentum may support investor interest, but the size of the rally also increases the risk of profit-taking and pullbacks. Moderna cancer vaccine trading momentum
- Negative Sentiment: Moderna President Stephen Hoge sold 40,294 shares for approximately $5.8 million, following another sale of a similar size. The transactions were conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, making them a limited bearish signal, but insider selling can still weigh on sentiment after a major run-up. Moderna insider selling report
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several research analysts recently issued reports on MRNA shares. Wolfe Research raised Moderna from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Moderna from $48.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Bank of America raised shares of Moderna from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Moderna in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Argus upgraded Moderna from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, August 28th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.72.
Check Out Our Latest Report on Moderna
Moderna Price Performance
The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 2.29 and a quick ratio of 2.18. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $99.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.17. The company has a market cap of $61.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.28 and a beta of 1.10.
Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The company reported ($1.97) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.03) by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $145.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $102.93 million. Moderna had a negative return on equity of 28.30% and a negative net margin of 141.43%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned ($2.13) EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Moderna, Inc. will post -6.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Insider Activity
In other Moderna news, insider Shannon Klinger sold 3,471 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.95, for a total transaction of $485,766.45. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 74,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,374,353.55. This trade represents a 4.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, President Stephen Hoge sold 40,281 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.07, for a total transaction of $5,883,845.67. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 1,562,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $228,165,576.03. The trade was a 2.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 118,882 shares of company stock valued at $16,862,280. 10.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Moderna
Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Moderna in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,142,877,000. Theleme Partners LLP acquired a new position in Moderna in the 2nd quarter valued at $564,272,000. Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in shares of Moderna in the 4th quarter worth $378,299,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Moderna by 4.4% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,461,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $172,384,000 after acquiring an additional 103,977 shares during the period. Finally, Merck & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in Moderna during the second quarter worth about $161,642,545. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.33% of the company’s stock.
About Moderna
Moderna, Inc is a biotechnology company that develops messenger RNA (mRNA) medicines and vaccines. Its platform is designed to provide cells with instructions to produce proteins that may help prevent or treat infectious diseases, cancer and other medical conditions.
The company’s commercial products include Spikevax, an mRNA vaccine for COVID-19, and mRESVIA, an mRNA vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in older adults. Moderna also maintains a pipeline of investigational programs in areas such as seasonal influenza, cytomegalovirus, oncology and rare diseases.
Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Moderna serves markets in the United States and internationally through regulatory approvals, commercial partnerships and distribution arrangements.