Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA)

Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 106,605 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 35% compared to the typical daily volume of 78,801 call options.

Moderna Stock Performance

MRNA traded up $13.93 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $154.27. The company had a trading volume of 25,744,310 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,585,744. The business has a 50-day moving average of $78.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $60.54. The company has a quick ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. Moderna has a 1 year low of $22.28 and a 1 year high of $176.66. The company has a market cap of $61.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -19.31 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 for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.03) by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $145.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $102.93 million. Moderna had a negative return on equity of 28.30% and a negative net margin of 141.43%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($2.13) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Moderna will post -6.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

More Moderna News

Here are the key news stories impacting Moderna this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Melanoma vaccine results remain the key catalyst. Moderna and Merck reported positive late-stage results for their personalized melanoma vaccine, reinforcing investor optimism that Moderna can expand beyond COVID-19 vaccines into oncology and other high-value markets. The development was a major driver of the stock’s sharp August rally and is also drawing attention to healthcare-focused ETFs. Moderna Stock More Than Doubled in August
• Positive Sentiment: Options activity points to bullish positioning. Traders purchased 106,605 Moderna call options Tuesday, about 35% above typical call volume of 78,801 contracts. While options activity does not guarantee future performance, the unusual volume suggests increased speculative interest in additional upside.
• Positive Sentiment: Upcoming investor conferences could provide additional catalysts. Moderna will present at the Morgan Stanley Global Healthcare Conference on September 14 and the Bernstein Healthcare Forum on September 23. Investors may look for updates on oncology, flu vaccines, COVID-19 products and the company’s financial outlook. Moderna to Present at Upcoming Conferences
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst support remains mixed. Brookline Capital Markets retained a “Buy” rating but slightly lowered its FY2029 and FY2030 EPS estimates. Separately, analysts overall have assigned the stock an average “Hold” rating, reflecting the potential of Moderna’s pipeline but also uncertainty around its path to sustained profitability. Moderna Analyst Ratings
• Negative Sentiment: GSK is advancing a competing mRNA flu vaccine into Phase III. The move increases competitive pressure shortly after Moderna received FDA approval for the first seasonal flu mRNA vaccine. Although investors appeared to look past the development Tuesday, a successful GSK program could challenge Moderna’s future flu-vaccine market share. GSK mRNA Flu Vaccine Moves to Phase III

Insider Activity at Moderna

In other Moderna news, President Stephen Hoge sold 53,336 shares of Moderna stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.37, for a total value of $2,739,870.32. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 1,483,848 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,225,271.76. The trade was a 3.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Shannon Thyme Klinger sold 3,471 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $173,550.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 67,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,373,400. This represents 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. Company insiders own 10.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Moderna

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Moderna during the 2nd quarter valued at $2,142,877,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in Moderna by 6,698.1% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 27,681,318 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,938,523,000 after buying an additional 27,274,128 shares during the period. Capital World Investors bought a new position in Moderna in the 4th quarter worth $378,299,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Moderna by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,216,163 shares of the company’s stock worth $212,223,000 after buying an additional 1,115,131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Theleme Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Moderna in the 2nd quarter worth $564,272,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRNA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays increased their target price on Moderna from $48.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Moderna from $40.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Loop Capital set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Moderna in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Moderna in a report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of Moderna from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $80.53.

About Moderna

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.