Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA – Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $39.00 to $89.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.
A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on MRNA. William Blair upgraded Moderna from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America upgraded shares of Moderna from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Brookline Capital Markets reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Moderna in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Moderna from $41.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Moderna in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Moderna has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $69.50.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Moderna
Moderna Stock Performance
Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The company reported ($1.97) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.03) by $0.06. Moderna had a negative return on equity of 28.30% and a negative net margin of 141.43%.The company had revenue of $145.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $102.93 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($2.13) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Moderna will post -6.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Insider Buying and Selling at Moderna
In other news, President Stephen Hoge sold 53,336 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $76,225,271.76. This represents a 3.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at 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 dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $173,550.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 67,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,373,400. This represents a 4.89% decrease in their position. 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. 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.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Moderna
A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new position in shares of Moderna during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Allied Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Moderna in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Canton Hathaway LLC purchased a new stake in Moderna in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Archer Investment Corp acquired a new position in Moderna in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Moderna by 148.3% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,341 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 801 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.33% of the company’s stock.
Moderna News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Moderna this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Investors are assigning substantial commercial potential to the cancer program. Jefferies reportedly estimates as much as $54 billion in peak global sales and raised its price target to $170, while coverage highlighted the possibility that the trial could establish an oncology opportunity comparable to Merck’s Keytruda franchise. Jefferies sees $54 billion peak sales for Moderna cancer therapy
- Positive Sentiment: The favorable Phase 3 outcome has triggered analyst upgrades, including William Blair moving Moderna to Outperform and Bank of America raising its rating to Neutral. The stock also reached a new 12-month high amid renewed enthusiasm for mRNA-based cancer treatments. Moderna raised to Outperform at William Blair
- Neutral Sentiment: Trading has been exceptionally volatile for a third consecutive session. Analysts attribute the sharp swings partly to heavy short interest and a subsequent short squeeze, while options activity suggests elevated volatility may persist even without new clinical information. Moderna rallies as mRNA trading whipsaws
- Negative Sentiment: Valuation concerns remain significant after the recent surge. JPMorgan raised its price target to $77 but retained an Underweight rating, implying substantial downside from current levels. Commentary also cautioned that the clinical success does not eliminate development, regulatory, manufacturing, commercialization, and pipeline risks for Moderna or other mRNA companies. JPMorgan raises Moderna price target but keeps Underweight rating
Moderna Company 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.
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