Back to top

Image: Shutterstock

Moderna (MRNA) Gets FDA Emergency Use Nod for COVID-19 Vaccine

Read MoreHide Full Article

Moderna, Inc. (MRNA - Free Report) announced that the FDA has granted emergency use authorization (“EUA”) to its mRNA-based coronavirus vaccine, mRNA-1273, for use in individuals 18 years of age or older. The vaccine candidate becomes the second one to get an emergency approval in the United States. The approval came just a day after an advisory committee recommended its approval. The vaccine has achieved an efficacy rate of 94.1% during the primary efficacy analysis of the phase III COVE study. The company continues to gather additional data and plans to file a biologics license application (“BLA”) for full U.S. licensure next year.

The allocation and distribution of the vaccine in the United States will be managed by the Department of Defense (DoD), in partnership with the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”), as part of Operation Warp Speed. Vaccines are being delivered to healthcare personnel treating patients and residents in long-term care facilities in the first phase (phase Ia) of the rollout. CDC has partnered with delivery majors — United Parcel Services (UPS - Free Report) and FedEx — for delivery of vaccine shots to various locations in the country.

Moderna’s shares have skyrocketed 617% so far this year compared with the industry’s rise of 9.8%.

Notably, the FDA granted EUA to Pfizer (PFE - Free Report) /BioNTech’s (BNTX - Free Report) coronavirus vaccine, BNT162b2, earlier this month and vaccination is in full swing. An additional vaccine will likely help the U.S. government to contain the widely spreading COVID-19 infection in the country, which has caused more than 300,000 deaths so far.

Moderna plans to deliver approximately 20 million doses of the vaccine in the United States by year-end. Per a Reuters article, 5.9 million and 2 million vaccine shots of Moderna and Pfizer, respectively, are expected to be delivered to individuals by the U.S. government this week. Moderna has the agreement in place to supply 100 million doses of mRNA-1273 by the first quarter of 2021, followed by another 100 million doses in the second quarter. The U.S. government has the option to purchase another 300 million doses of mRNA-1273.

Pfizer’s logistical hurdle related to ultra-low temperature requirement for the storage of its vaccine and lower storage duration compared to Moderna’ mRNA-1273 will likely be beneficial for the latter in the near-term. The U.S. government may exercise its option for additional 300 million doses of mRNA-1273.

In a separate press release, Moderna announced that the European Commission has exercised its option for additional doses. The company now has a supply agreement for 160 million doses with Europe. The company’s emergency use approval request is currently under review in Europe and several other countries.

Alarmingly, a new strain of coronavirus has been reported in a few countries, including the United Kingdom, which is assumed to spread faster. However, the resiliency of this new strain of the virus against vaccines has not been confirmed yet and the effectiveness of the vaccine remains to be seen.

Moderna, Inc. Price

Moderna, Inc. Price

Moderna, Inc. price | Moderna, Inc. Quote

Zacks Rank

Moderna currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential

The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. They’re also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases.

Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better.

See these 7 breakthrough stocks now>>

Published in