Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) Director Sells $433,878.92 in Stock

Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) Director Noubar Afeyan sold 9,263 shares of Moderna stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.84, for a total transaction of $433,878.92. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $183,800.16. This trade represents a 70.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Moderna Trading Down 0.8%

MRNA stock traded down $0.38 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $46.88. 4,217,570 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,570,250. The company has a market capitalization of $18.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.75 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 2.35. Moderna, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $22.28 and a fifty-two week high of $59.55. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $51.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $41.55.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The company reported ($3.40) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($3.02) by ($0.38). The business had revenue of $389.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $236.37 million. Moderna had a negative net margin of 143.55% and a negative return on equity of 26.64%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 260.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($2.52) earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Moderna, Inc. will post -6.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moderna News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Moderna this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Moderna named James Mock as its new chief financial officer, a move that should help stabilize leadership in a key finance role. James Mock Joins Moderna as Chief Financial Officer
• Positive Sentiment: Moderna and Merck reported five-year data showing their melanoma combination therapy reduced the risk of cancer spreading by 59%, supporting the company’s oncology pipeline. Moderna, Merck cancer combo cuts melanoma spread risk at five years
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a reported average rating of “Reduce,” suggesting the market still has reservations about near-term execution. Moderna, Inc. Receives Average Rating of “Reduce” from Analysts
• Negative Sentiment: The FDA’s rare advisory panel review of Moderna’s mRNA flu vaccine introduces regulatory uncertainty for a program investors had been watching closely. USFDA to Convene Expert Panel Review for Moderna’s mRNA Flu Vaccine
• Negative Sentiment: Related reports said Moderna is facing FDA scrutiny on its flu shot, and the added regulatory review has been a drag on the stock. FDA plans rare advisory hearing to debate Moderna’s flu shot

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MRNA. Leerink Partners reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of Moderna in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Moderna from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Moderna from $43.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Moderna from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Moderna in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $35.73.

Institutional Trading of Moderna

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MRNA. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in shares of Moderna during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Moderna in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Canton Hathaway LLC bought a new stake in shares of Moderna in the first quarter worth $31,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Moderna by 3,775.0% in the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 1,240 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 1,208 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cromwell Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Moderna by 39.7% in the fourth quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 1,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.33% of the company’s stock.

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.