Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) Shares Down 8.2% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) fell 8.2% during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $131.20 and last traded at $133.2460. 6,749,396 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 38% from the average daily volume of 10,818,839 shares. The stock had previously closed at $145.13.

More Moderna News

Here are the key news stories impacting Moderna this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Moderna and Merck reported a major melanoma-cancer-vaccine breakthrough: their personalized mRNA treatment, used with Merck’s Keytruda, showed strong Phase 3 results. The data reinforce the potential for Moderna’s platform to expand beyond infectious diseases and become a meaningful oncology business. Moderna reports a cancer vaccine breakthrough
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage of the melanoma results has driven broad enthusiasm for mRNA technology, with investors viewing the findings as validation of Moderna’s personalized-vaccine approach and its partnership with Merck. Why Moderna’s and Merck’s cancer vaccine is a breakthrough for mRNA
• Positive Sentiment: Moderna’s mRNA flu vaccine was reported as FDA-approved, adding another potential commercial product and supporting the company’s effort to diversify its revenue base. Moderna’s mRNA flu vaccine approved by FDA
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its Moderna price target to $77, while an analyst upgrade contributed to unusually heavy trading volume. However, that target remains well below the stock’s recent trading level, signaling that some analysts still view the rally as excessive. JPMorgan boosts Moderna price target
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts caution that personalized cancer vaccines may be difficult to manufacture at scale and less financially lucrative than investors expect. Moderna remains loss-making, with an estimated full-year loss of $6.18 per share, making the stock’s sharp rally dependent on future clinical and commercial execution. Moderna cancer vaccine financial outlook

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRNA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Moderna in a research note on Friday, June 12th. William Blair raised Moderna from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of Moderna in a report on Monday, July 20th. Barclays set a $125.00 target price on Moderna in a research report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Moderna from $40.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.31.

Moderna Trading Down 3.2%

The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The business has a 50 day moving average of $68.49 and a 200-day moving average of $56.19. The stock has a market cap of $56.07 billion, a PE ratio of -17.58 and a beta of 0.91.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The company reported ($1.97) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($2.03) by $0.06. Moderna had a negative net margin of 141.43% and a negative return on equity of 28.30%. The business had revenue of $145.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $102.93 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($2.13) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Moderna, Inc. will post -6.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moderna

In other news, insider Shannon Thyme Klinger sold 3,471 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $173,550.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 67,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,373,400. This represents a 4.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, President Stephen Hoge sold 53,336 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.37, for a total transaction of $2,739,870.32. Following the transaction, the president 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 10.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Allied Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Moderna in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Archer Investment Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Moderna in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Canton Hathaway LLC bought a new stake in shares of Moderna during the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moderna during the second quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new stake in Moderna during the 2nd quarter worth about $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.