Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) Sets New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) shares hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday. The company traded as high as $211.89 and last traded at $196.6480, with a volume of 2459099 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $203.21.

Key Headlines Impacting Moderna

Here are the key news stories impacting Moderna this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Healthcare-sector strength: Moderna was among the healthcare leaders in Wednesday trading, providing a broad sector-driven tailwind as investors favored defensive and pharmaceutical stocks. Moderna, Eli Lilly Lead Healthcare Stocks Higher on a Down Day for Markets
• Positive Sentiment: Expanded cancer-therapy collaboration: Tempus announced a multi-year collaboration with Moderna and Merck to support the potential commercialization of intismeran autogene (V940/mRNA-4157), an individualized neoantigen therapy being tested with Merck’s KEYTRUDA in melanoma and other cancers. The agreement reinforces the commercial potential of Moderna’s oncology pipeline, although the therapy remains investigational. Tempus Announces Multi-Year Collaboration with Moderna and Merck
• Positive Sentiment: Manufacturing and platform developments: Moderna highlighted lessons from its COVID-era manufacturing scale-up, while a separate experimental AI approach aims to eliminate cold-storage requirements for mRNA vaccines. If validated, improved stability and distribution could reduce costs and expand global access, though the technology is not yet an immediate revenue driver. Experimental approach uses AI to eliminate cold storage for mRNA vaccines
• Neutral Sentiment: New COO and valuation debate: Coverage of Moderna’s new chief operating officer presents a potentially favorable operational catalyst, but also argues the stock may be roughly 57% above estimated fair value, highlighting elevated expectations after its major 2026 rally. Moderna Could Be 57% Above Fair Value on New COO Appointment
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst caution: Morgan Stanley raised its price target to $95 from $89 but retained an “equal weight” rating, implying substantial downside from prevailing trading levels and signaling that the recent rally may have outpaced fundamentals.
• Negative Sentiment: Profit-taking risk: Commentary noting Moderna’s roughly 545% year-to-date gain warns that the sharp run-up could encourage investors to lock in gains, increasing volatility and limiting further upside in the near term. Moderna Is Up 545% in 2026: Take Profits Now, or Keep Buying?

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on MRNA shares. CLSA upgraded shares of Moderna to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 28th. Loop Capital set a $135.00 price target on shares of Moderna in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Moderna in a report on Friday, August 28th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Moderna from $89.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Moderna from $67.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Moderna has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.17.

Moderna Stock Up 4.8%

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $133.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.44 billion, a PE ratio of -24.59 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 2.29 and a quick ratio of 2.18.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The company reported ($1.97) 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 firm had revenue of $145.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $102.93 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($2.13) EPS. Moderna’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Moderna, Inc. will post -6.09 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Shannon Klinger sold 3,471 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.95, for a total transaction of $485,766.45. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 74,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,374,353.55. This represents a 4.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available 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 40,281 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.07, for a total value of $5,883,845.67. Following the sale, the president owned 1,562,029 shares in the company, valued at $228,165,576.03. This trade represents a 2.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 118,882 shares of company stock valued at $16,862,280. Corporate insiders own 10.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MRNA. Allied Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Moderna during the second quarter worth $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 acquired a new stake in shares of Moderna in the first quarter valued at about $31,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Moderna during the second 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.33% of the company’s stock.

Moderna Company Profile

Moderna, Inc is a biotechnology company that develops medicines and vaccines using messenger RNA (mRNA) technology. Its platform is designed to instruct cells to produce proteins that can help prevent or treat disease, supporting the company’s work across infectious diseases, immuno-oncology, rare diseases, autoimmune conditions, and cardiovascular diseases.

Moderna’s commercial products include Spikevax, an mRNA vaccine for COVID-19, and mRESVIA, an mRNA vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in older adults.