Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNAGet Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $149.66, but opened at $144.18. Moderna shares last traded at $143.0880, with a volume of 5,121,405 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on MRNA shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Moderna in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Moderna from $67.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Moderna from $39.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Wolfe Research raised Moderna from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Moderna in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.31.

View Our Latest Report on Moderna

Moderna Stock Down 7.3%

The company has a quick ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company’s fifty day moving average is $74.05 and its 200-day moving average is $58.46. The company has a market cap of $55.42 billion, a PE ratio of -17.40 and a beta of 0.91.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNAGet Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $145.00 million during 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%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($2.13) EPS. On average, analysts predict that Moderna, Inc. will post -6.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Moderna 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 transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Shannon Thyme Klinger sold 3,471 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $173,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 67,468 shares in the company, valued at $3,373,400. The trade was 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. Company insiders own 10.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Moderna

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Moderna during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,142,877,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Moderna by 6,698.1% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 27,681,318 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,938,523,000 after purchasing an additional 27,274,128 shares during the period. Capital World Investors bought a new position in shares of Moderna in the fourth quarter worth approximately $378,299,000. Theleme Partners LLP bought a new position in shares of Moderna in the second quarter worth approximately $564,272,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Moderna in the fourth quarter worth $95,209,000. 75.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Moderna

(Get Free Report)

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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