Moderna Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:MRNA)

Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors purchased 177,638 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 258% compared to the typical daily volume of 49,635 put options.

Moderna News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Moderna this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The INTerpath-001 trial met its primary endpoints for recurrence-free survival and distant metastasis-free survival. Adding intismeran to Merck’s Keytruda reduced the risk of melanoma returning or spreading compared with Keytruda alone, marking the first positive late-stage validation of a personalized mRNA cancer vaccine. Merck and Moderna announce positive Phase 3 INTerpath-001 results
• Positive Sentiment: The results substantially improve Moderna’s long-term growth outlook by supporting a potential oncology franchise beyond its COVID-19 and respiratory vaccine business. Investors also viewed the data as validating the company’s mRNA platform, while short covering likely amplified the move; short sellers faced unusually large losses as the stock surged. Reuters report on Moderna short sellers
• Positive Sentiment: William Blair upgraded Moderna from “market perform” to “outperform,” adding analyst support to the positive clinical readout. The company also received FDA approval for mFLUSIVA, its seasonal mRNA influenza vaccine, creating a potential additional commercial revenue source. The Fly report on William Blair’s upgrade
• Neutral Sentiment: The cancer-vaccine announcement provided topline results, and analysts are awaiting detailed efficacy, safety and follow-up data. The companies must still pursue regulatory approval and establish manufacturing and pricing for a complex individualized therapy. Reuters analysis of Moderna-Merck melanoma data
• Negative Sentiment: Put-option purchases were approximately 258% above typical daily volume, signaling heightened hedging or bearish speculation. Such activity may increase volatility, although it could also reflect investors protecting gains after the dramatic rally.

Moderna Price Performance

Shares of MRNA traded up $94.07 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $157.03. The stock had a trading volume of 127,802,149 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,332,802. The company’s fifty day moving average is $62.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.94. 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 has a 52 week low of $22.28 and a 52 week high of $163.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.72 and a beta of 0.91.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. 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 quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($2.13) EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Moderna will post -6.2 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRNA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. William Blair upgraded shares of Moderna from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Moderna in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Moderna in a research report on Wednesday. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Moderna from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Moderna from $49.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.94.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moderna

In other news, Director Noubar Afeyan sold 9,263 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.84, for a total transaction of $433,878.92. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $183,800.16. The trade was a 70.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Shannon Thyme Klinger sold 3,471 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $173,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 67,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,373,400. The trade was a 4.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 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. Insiders sold a total of 66,070 shares of company stock valued at $3,347,299 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 10.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Allied Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Moderna during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Archer Investment Corp bought a new stake in shares of Moderna during the second quarter worth $36,000. Canton Hathaway LLC bought a new stake in shares of Moderna during the first quarter worth $31,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moderna in the second quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Moderna in the second quarter valued at about $46,000. 75.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.