Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA – Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 213,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,973,000.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Allied Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Moderna in the second quarter worth $30,000. Canton Hathaway LLC bought a new position in Moderna during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Moderna during the 2nd quarter worth $45,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Moderna during the 2nd quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of Moderna by 35.1% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 801 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. 75.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Moderna from $48.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Argus raised Moderna from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday. Brookline Capital Markets restated a “buy” rating on shares of Moderna in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Moderna in a report on Friday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, CLSA upgraded Moderna to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $80.53.
Moderna Trading Down 3.3%
NASDAQ MRNA opened at $137.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a current ratio of 2.29. Moderna, Inc. has a one year low of $22.28 and a one year high of $176.66. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $77.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.09 billion, a PE ratio of -17.27 and a beta of 0.91.
Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The company reported ($1.97) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($2.03) by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $145.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $102.93 million. Moderna had a negative net margin of 141.43% and a negative return on equity of 28.30%. Moderna’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($2.13) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Moderna, Inc. will post -6.11 earnings per share for the current year.
Moderna News Summary
Here are the key news stories impacting Moderna this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Moderna and Merck reported that their personalized mRNA melanoma vaccine, intismeran, combined with Keytruda, met the goals of a Phase 3 study involving 1,137 patients. The treatment reduced the risk of melanoma recurrence and distant spread versus Keytruda alone, strengthening the case for Moderna’s oncology pipeline and the commercial potential of the partnership. Reuters cancer vaccine breakthrough article
- Positive Sentiment: The U.S. FDA approved Moderna’s updated 2026–2027 Spikevax and mNEXSPIKE COVID-19 vaccines, targeting the XFG subvariant. The approval preserves access to the seasonal COVID-19 vaccine market, though future demand remains an important uncertainty. Reuters FDA approval article
- Positive Sentiment: Argus upgraded Moderna from “Hold” to “Buy” and assigned a $180 price target, indicating additional potential upside based on the company’s oncology opportunity and recent clinical progress. Argus upgrade article
- Neutral Sentiment: Jim Cramer advised a viewer to hold Moderna after the stock’s sharp rally, reflecting continued optimism about the Phase 3 cancer-vaccine result but also caution following the run-up. Jim Cramer Moderna commentary
- Negative Sentiment: Moderna priced an upsized $2.6 billion offering of zero-coupon convertible senior notes due 2032, increased from the initially proposed $2.0 billion. Proceeds may fund oncology investments and debt repayment, but the larger financing raised concerns about future share dilution and explains much of the selling pressure. Moderna convertible notes offering
- Negative Sentiment: BioNTech’s decision to halt a mid-stage personalized mRNA colorectal-cancer vaccine trial after a review weakened sentiment across the mRNA oncology sector, raising broader questions about the difficulty of translating promising technology into successful cancer treatments. BioNTech colorectal cancer trial article
Insider Activity at Moderna
In other news, President Stephen Hoge sold 53,336 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.37, for a total value of $2,739,870.32. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 1,483,848 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,225,271.76. This represents a 3.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Shannon Thyme Klinger sold 3,471 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $173,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 67,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,373,400. This trade represents a 4.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 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. Insiders own 10.80% of the company’s stock.
Moderna Profile
Moderna, Inc is a biotechnology company headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, specializing in messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines. The company’s platform leverages synthetic mRNA to instruct cells to produce proteins that can prevent or treat diseases. Since its founding in 2010, Moderna has advanced from early-stage research into a broad pipeline of vaccine and therapeutic candidates designed to address infectious diseases, rare genetic disorders and chronic illnesses.
Moderna’s flagship product is its mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine, which was the first of its kind to receive emergency use authorization and later full approval in multiple jurisdictions.
Read More
- Five stocks we like better than Moderna
- 3 Financial Stocks Positioned for the Fed’s Next Move After Jackson Hole
- IREN’s AI Pivot Looks Real, But the Market Wanted a Faster Payoff After Earnings
- Boeing’s $131B F-15 Win: Mach 1 Momentum or Just Altitude?
- Okta Stock Surges 29%—Is $200 the Next Stop?
Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MRNA? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Moderna Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Moderna and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
