Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) Trading Up 8.5% – Here’s What Happened

Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) shares traded up 8.5% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $161.96 and last traded at $158.07. Approximately 19,084,286 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 64% from the average session volume of 11,611,695 shares. The stock had previously closed at $145.62.

More Moderna News

Here are the key news stories impacting Moderna this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Moderna’s Phase 3 success for intismeran autogene, its personalized mRNA cancer vaccine being developed with Merck’s Keytruda, remains the primary catalyst. Investors view the program as a potential long-term growth engine that could help offset declining COVID-19 vaccine revenue. Moderna cancer vaccine rally
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and higher price targets have added momentum, reinforcing the view that Moderna may be transitioning from a COVID-focused vaccine company into a broader mRNA medicines and oncology business. Why Moderna stock is surging
• Positive Sentiment: The cancer-vaccine trade has extended a sharp month-long rally, with investors continuing to buy the stock even without a new company disclosure Thursday. The move suggests strong enthusiasm for the clinical opportunity, though it also increases expectations for future trial and regulatory progress. Moderna cancer vaccine momentum
• Neutral Sentiment: Speculation that Merck could eventually acquire Moderna has increased the strategic appeal of the partnership, but no acquisition has been announced. Investors should treat this as speculation rather than a confirmed catalyst.
• Negative Sentiment: Moderna President Stephen Hoge sold 40,294 shares for approximately $5.8 million, following a separate sale of 40,281 shares. Both transactions were executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, which reduces their significance as discretionary bearish signals, but insider selling can still weigh on sentiment. Moderna SEC insider sale filing

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on MRNA shares. CLSA raised Moderna to an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 28th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Moderna from $48.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. UBS Group set a $81.00 price target on shares of Moderna in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Moderna from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Moderna from $67.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Moderna has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.72.

Moderna Stock Up 8.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a current ratio of 2.29. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $96.37 and its 200 day moving average is $68.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.11 billion, a PE ratio of -19.78 and a beta of 1.10.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported ($1.97) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 141.43% and a negative return on equity of 28.30%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($2.13) EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Moderna, Inc. will post -6.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Moderna news, President Stephen Hoge sold 40,294 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.13, for a total transaction of $5,807,574.22. Following the sale, the president owned 1,525,858 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,921,913.54. This represents a 2.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO James M. Mock sold 34,836 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.49, for a total value of $4,685,093.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,985,343.75. The trade was a 36.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 118,882 shares of company stock worth $16,862,280 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 10.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Moderna

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MRNA. Allied Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Moderna during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Archer Investment Corp purchased a new position in Moderna in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Canton Hathaway LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moderna during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moderna during the 2nd quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Moderna during the second quarter worth about $46,000. 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.