
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Moderna and BioNTech shares both cratered to their lowest price in years Monday as the companies behind the most widely-circulated mRNA Covid-19 vaccines grapple with investor disappointment with crashing revenues.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>BioNTech and Moderna’s stocks fell 8% and 6%, respectively, a decline spurred by BioNTech’s earnings report revealing the German firm’s sales fell 95% year-over-year last quarter.</p>



<p>Moderna’s fresh decline came after it reported a 93% annual decline in quarterly revenues in its own earnings release Thursday.</p>



<p>Moderna’s $101.20 close Monday was its lowest since November 2020, while BioNTech’s $98.50 close was its lowest since March 2021.</p>



<p>BioNTech, which developed a Covid vaccine with Pfizer, said Monday it expects to generate $5.5 billion in Covid vaccine sales this year, a 70% decline from 2022, while Moderna’s $6 billion to $8 billion in forecasted Covid jab sales is similarly about two-thirds below its $18 billion of revenue in the unit last year.</p>



<p>The stock crashes moved against broader market gains, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s 408-point, or 1.2%, rally its strongest since June 2.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Shares of Moderna are down 78% from their September 2021 high of $456, making the Massachusetts-based pharmaceutical company the worst-performing stock listed on the S&amp;P 500 during the period, according to FactSet data. BioNTech, which isn’t listed on the S&amp;P, is also down 78% from its 2021 peak share price. Moderna and Pfizer are among the worst-performing stocks listed on the S&amp;P this year as the rival firms both grappled with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2023/01/31/pfizer-expects-covid-vaccine-and-pill-revenues-will-fall-60-in-2023/?sh=182d46027bee">declining demand</a>&nbsp;for Covid prevention and treatment.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>About $340 billion. That’s how much market capitalization BioNTech (down $85 billion) and Moderna (down $157 billion) have lost over the last two years.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>Until BioNTech gets “the COVID guidance monkey off its back, this will remain purgatory for most investors,” Jefferies analysts led by Akash Tewari wrote in a Monday note to clients.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2023/07/03/worst-stocks-of-2023s-first-half-battered-banks-and-vaccine-makers/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MORE FROM FORBES<strong>Worst Stocks Of 2023&#8217;s First Half: Battered Banks And Vaccine Makers</strong><small>By <strong>Derek Saul</strong></small></a></p>


In this photo illustration the medical syringe is seen with

Covid Vaccine Makers’ Stocks Crash To Multiyear Lows Monday As Sales Keep Sliding


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Moderna on Tuesday&nbsp;<a href="https://investors.modernatx.com/news/news-details/2023/Moderna-Announces-Clinical-and-Program-Updates-at-4th-Vaccines-Day/default.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">unveiled</a>&nbsp;plans to develop vaccines against tick-borne Lyme disease and norovirus, a notorious stomach bug, the Massachusetts-based biotech’s latest efforts to bolster its pipeline and expand its offerings ahead of a steep drop in demand for its Covid-19 vaccines.</p>



<p>Moderna announced plans to develop a Lyme vaccine.&nbsp;<small>GETTY IMAGES</small></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Moderna said it is developing multiple vaccines targeting&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/signs_symptoms/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Lyme disease</a>, a serious infection spread by tick bites that can cause a range of symptoms including fever, facial paralysis, arthritis and rash.</p>



<p>There is no vaccine for Lyme disease on the market in the U.S.—the only approved shot was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/prev/vaccine.html#:~:text=A%20vaccine%20for%20Lyme%20disease,2002%2C%20citing%20insufficient%20consumer%20demand." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">pulled</a>&nbsp;in 2002—and infections are rising, largely spurred on by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/14-percent-world-population-lyme-disease-rcna33279" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">climate</a>&nbsp;change&nbsp;<a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/lyme-disease-climate-crisis-ticks-b2136409.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">expanding</a>&nbsp;the range of the ticks that carry it.</p>



<p>There are around 120,000 Lyme disease cases reported in the U.S. and Europe each year and Moderna said the proposed vaccines target key species of the tick-borne bacteria responsible for most infections in the regions.</p>



<p>Vaccinating against bacterial infections like Lyme is generally more complicated than protecting against viral infections like Covid, and the effort marks the first time Moderna has applied its mRNA technology to bacterial threats.</p>



<p>Moderna also announced plans to develop mRNA vaccines targeting norovirus, which is highly contagious and the leading cause of diarrheal disease globally.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-news-peg">NEWS PEG</h2>



<p>Moderna&nbsp;<a href="https://www.statnews.com/2016/09/13/moderna-therapeutics-biotech-mrna/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">struggled</a>&nbsp;for years to commercialize its mRNA technology before achieving stellar success with its Covid-19 vaccine during the pandemic. With demand for those shots waning, it is under intense pressure to diversify its offerings. In addition to respiratory diseases like Covid, flu and RSV, Moderna has shots targeting various cancers,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/02/22/moderna-hopes-to-build-on-mrna-tech-used-in-its-covid-shots-by-targeting-genetic-diseases/?sh=76b4f6452692">genetic&nbsp;</a>conditions and infectious diseases like HIV, herpes simplex virus and cytomegalovirus in the pipeline.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h2>



<p>Moderna said it expects six “major vaccine” launches in the “next few years.” On Tuesday, Moderna said it plans to seek regulatory approval for its latest RSV vaccine this quarter. The company pushed back its timeline for its flu shot, however, citing the need to gather more data.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>$15 billion. That’s how much Moderna estimates the annual global market for Covid booster shots is worth. The company said it expects to make up to $9 billion in profit from sales of respiratory products, which include its Covid booster shots and possible upcoming shots for illnesses like RSV.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/02/22/moderna-hopes-to-build-on-mrna-tech-used-in-its-covid-shots-by-targeting-genetic-diseases/?sh=76b4f6452692">Moderna Hopes To Build On mRNA Tech Used In Its Covid Shots—By Targeting Genetic Diseases</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/04/06/first-fda-approved-rsv-vaccines-expected-later-this-year-the-top-vaccines-and-their-effectiveness/?sh=7cb25dd65f81">First FDA-Approved RSV Vaccines Expected Later This Year: The Top Vaccines And Their Effectiveness</a> (Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/"></a><em><strong>By Robert Hart, Forbes Staff</strong></em></p>


COVID-19 Vaccination in Colombia

Vaccines For Lyme Disease And Norovirus? Moderna Working On Shots Targeting Tick-Borne Infection And Vomiting Bug


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>The Food and Drug Administration approved Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine Monday, providing a much needed break for the American biotechnology company.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>The FDA fully approved Moderna’s mRNA Spikevax coronavirus vaccine for people ages 18 and older, the agency&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-takes-key-action-approving-second-covid-19-vaccine" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">announced</a>&nbsp;Monday morning.</p>



<p>The Moderna Covid-19 vaccine is the second to receive FDA approval: the FDA&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jemimamcevoy/2021/08/23/fda-approves-pfizer-coronavirus-vaccine-report-says/?sh=2e3d7fd3c557">approved</a>&nbsp;the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for people ages 16 and up last August.</p>



<p>Moderna’s vaccine has been available to adults since December 2020 under the FDA’s emergency use authorization.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Moderna stock&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonathanponciano/2022/01/21/moderna-stock-crash-intensifies-losses-top-130-billion-after-scientists-find-covid-boosters-arent-halting-omicron-infections/?sh=16841ca7ef5c">has tanked</a>&nbsp;in 2022 following preliminary&nbsp;<a href="https://www.barrons.com/articles/fourth-covid-vaccine-shot-omicron-pfizer-moderna-study-51642501988" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">evidence</a>&nbsp;that the company’s Covid-19 booster dose was not as effective at preventing Covid-19 infections from the omicron variant compared to prior variants. Shares of Moderna are down 35% in January, though Moderna stock recovered modestly in Monday trading, rising 3.8% to $165.53 as of 12:05 p.m., still down 66.7% from its all-time high of $497.49.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock said in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-takes-key-action-approving-second-covid-19-vaccine" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">release</a>: “The public can be assured that Spikevax meets the FDA’s high standards for safety, effectiveness and manufacturing quality required of any vaccine approved for use in the United States.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>807 million. That’s how many doses of Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine were shipped worldwide in 2021, the company&nbsp;<a href="https://investors.modernatx.com/news/news-details/2022/Moderna-Receives-Full-U.S.-FDA-Approval-for-COVID-19-Vaccine-Spikevax/default.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;Monday. More than 10.1 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines have been administered worldwide,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/covid-vaccine-tracker-global-distribution/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a>&nbsp;to Bloomberg’s vaccine tracker.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/katiejennings/2021/08/23/pfizer-received-full-fda-approval-for-its-covid-vaccine-heres-whats-next/?sh=1273df34774e">Pfizer Received Full FDA Approval For Its Covid Vaccine: Here’s What’s Next</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jemimamcevoy/2021/08/23/fda-approves-pfizer-coronavirus-vaccine-report-says/?sh=2e3d7fd3c557">FDA Approves Pfizer Coronavirus Vaccine</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonathanponciano/2022/01/21/moderna-stock-crash-intensifies-losses-top-130-billion-after-scientists-find-covid-boosters-arent-halting-omicron-infections/?sh=16841ca7ef5c">Moderna Stock Crash Intensifies: Losses Top $130 Billion</a> (<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><strong><em>By Derek Saul, Forbes Staff</em></strong></p>


Japan begins the third inoculation of COVID-19 vaccine

Moderna Receives FDA Approval For Its Coronavirus Vaccine


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Moderna shares plummeted Friday morning after the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based biotech firm reported early data for its seasonal flu vaccine that failed to impress investors, intensifying a crash that&#8217;s wiped out nearly 50% of the value in one of the year&#8217;s best-performing stocks.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Shares of Moderna fell 8% Friday by 11:30 a.m. ET after the company&nbsp;<a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/moderna-announces-positive-interim-phase-120000491.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>&nbsp;early data for its seasonal flu vaccine that showed robust increases in antibody concentration among patients in the study.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Though Moderna touted the results as positive, Morgan Stanley analyst Matthew Harison said the initial data looked &#8220;undifferentiated&#8221; with biotech firm Sanofi&#8217;s flu vaccine, which is already on the market—a disappointment for investors seeking data that &#8220;supported clearly better efficacy.&#8221;</p>



<p>Shares plunged as much as 13% after the early morning report, pulling prices to near one-month lows until they pared losses after Moderna&nbsp;<a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/moderna-announces-additional-20-million-140000120.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">announced</a>&nbsp;a new agreement to supply 20 million more Covid-19 vaccine doses to the World Health Organization&#8217;s Covax initiative, which is now on track to receive about 54 million Moderna vaccine doses in 2021.</p>



<p>At current prices of about $250, shares of Moderna have plunged 48% from an all-time closing high of $484 on August 9, wiping out about $97 billion from the firm&#8217;s market capitalization, which now stands at roughly $101 billion.</p>



<p>Despite its recent weakness, Moderna is still the S&amp;P’s third-best-performing component this year, with shares skyrocketing about 127% thanks to the company’s Covid-19 vaccine becoming widely available across the world.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>$8 billion. That’s how much Moderna CEO&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/stephane-bancel/?sh=339a33a73742">Stéphane Bancel</a>, who joined the firm in 2011, is worth as of 11:30 a.m. Friday, according to&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>. The French native owns a roughly 8% stake in Moderna.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Covid-19 vaccines, which are Moderna’s only commercialized product, have proven to be a massive boon for businesses heading up their development, but Moderna shares have struggled in recent months as critics increasingly question whether or not sales of Covid-19 vaccines alone will prove a viable revenue stream in years to come. Last month, the company reported third-quarter sales and earnings that failed to meet analysts’ expectations, with revenue falling short of $5 billion despite average analyst projections calling for $6.2 billion. In addition to lower sales projections, supply chain constraints and the development of antiviral Covid-19 treatments have also triggered Moderna stock sell-offs.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Diverse product offerings have helped Moderna&#8217;s biggest Covid-19 vaccine competitors earn high marks on Wall Street. Wells Fargo recently initiated Pfizer coverage with a “buy” rating and $60 price target, implying an upside of around 16% from current levels. The vaccine-maker’s new oral antiviral pill, Paxlovid, “provides another avenue for Covid-related growth” and will be a “game changer” for the company’s profits, the analysts said, forecasting nearly $18 billion in sales from the product next year.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/sergeiklebnikov/2021/12/09/this-vaccine-maker-can-dominate-the-covid-market-for-years-to-come-wells-fargo-predicts/?sh=1e4fd1851181">This Vaccine Maker Can &#8216;Dominate&#8217; The Covid Market For Years To Come, Wells Fargo Predicts</a>&nbsp;<em>(Forbes)</em></p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonathanponciano/2021/11/04/moderna-crash-wipes-out-another-24-billion-after-supply-chain-issues-dent-covid-vaccine-sales/">Moderna Crash Wipes Out Another $24 Billion After Supply-Chain Issues Dent Covid Vaccine Sales</a> <em>(Forbes)</em></p>



<p><strong><em>By Jonathan Ponciano, Forbes Staff</em></strong></p>


Moderna Stock Crash Has Wiped Nearly $100 Billion As Flu Vaccine Results Trigger Latest Plunge


<p><strong>TOPLINE</strong> Moderna has reached an agreement to sell up to 110 million shots of its Covid-19 vaccine to member nations of the African Union, the drugmaker announced on Tuesday, a move that comes at a time when vaccine makers and wealthy nations face increasing pressure to fulfill their commitments to poorer nations whose vaccination rates are vastly lower.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>In a press release on Monday, Moderna announced that it would deliver 15 million shots by the end of this year and an additional 35 million doses by the end of March.</p>



<p>The company said it’s working on plans to bottle doses of its vaccine in Africa sometime in 2023 and is also working to build a mRNA vaccine manufacturing facility in the continent.</p>



<p>Moderna’s fresh commitment is on top of its existing commitment to supply 500 million vaccine doses through 2022 to the WHO-backed Covax program, which was created to ensure equitable vaccine access, but that has since been criticized for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/0e240929-033a-457f-a735-ec7cf93b2f3c" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">failing</a>&nbsp;poorer nations.</p>



<p>A White House official told Forbes that the U.S. government will defer delivery of approximately 33 million doses of the Moderna vaccine between December and February—originally intended for the U.S.—so that the African Union can instead purchase and take delivery of those doses.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>Natalie Quillian, the White House’s Deputy Covid-19 Response Coordinator said: “We are grateful to have helped negotiate this encouraging step forward between Moderna and the African Union that will significantly expand access to vaccines on the continent in the near-term.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>14%. That’s the percentage of the 1.8 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines—promised by the G7 and Europe to poorer nations—which have been delivered so far, according to a report&nbsp;<a href="https://app.box.com/s/kygk0i850bo18l33vk5p3qwyq9umk527" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">published</a>&nbsp;last week by the People’s Vaccine Alliance. The report noted that Moderna has not delivered any of the vaccines it has pledged to Covax.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Tuesday’s agreement comes as Moderna faces growing criticism for not sharing its vaccine recipe or transferring its technology to manufacturers in poorer nations who could manufacture doses of its vaccine for their local markets. The drugmaker has previously said it is unable to directly supply more doses of its vaccine quickly to poorer nations as it has a limited manufacturing capacity and its current production is tied to existing orders placed by the U.S. and the European Union. A South African group called Afrigen Biologics and Vaccines is currently&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-technology-business-cape-town-health-48046e5255cc3e4fa27455fc12ab5e52" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">leading an effort&nbsp;</a>to replicate Moderna’s vaccine so it can be manufactured and distributed in the continent. The effort involves an attempt to reverse engineer the vaccine from bits of publicly available information. But experts have said the process would be a lot simpler if companies like Moderna or Pfizer simply agreed to share their expertise. The companies have so far not shared their know-how despite facing public pressure—including the Biden administration’s demands on Moderna.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for"><strong>WHAT TO WATCH FOR</strong></h2>



<p>BioNTech on Tuesday&nbsp;<a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2021/10/26/2320560/0/en/BioNTech-Plans-to-Initiate-the-Construction-of-an-mRNA-Vaccine-Manufacturing-Facility-in-Africa-in-mid-2022.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">announced</a>&nbsp;plans to begin construction of a manufacturing site for their mRNA vaccine in the African Union in mid-2022. The company noted that the facility’s first production line will manufacture around 50 million mRNA vaccine doses and it could eventually expand to an annual manufacturing capacity of several hundred million doses. The facility will initially be staffed, owned, and operated by BioNTech itself and it plans to eventually transfer the manufacturing capacity and know-how to local partners.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Last week, Reuters&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/exclusive-who-led-programme-aims-buy-antiviral-covid-19-pills-10-document-2021-10-19/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>&nbsp;that a WHO-backed initiative plans to seek funding of $22.8 billion to deliver Covid vaccines, antiviral drugs and tests to poorer nations. Earlier in the month, the WHO&nbsp;<a href="https://www.un.org/sg/en/node/259952" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">outlined</a>&nbsp;its new global vaccination strategy, aimed at getting 40% of people in all countries vaccinated by the end of this year and 70% by mid-2022. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also noted that vaccine scarcity wasn’t an issue as currently, 1.5 billion vaccine doses are being manufactured per month. “This is not a supply problem; it’s an allocation problem,” he said.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/26/world/africa/covid-moderna-african-union.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Moderna agrees to sell up to 110 million Covid vaccine doses to African countries</a>. (New York Times)</p>



<p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-technology-business-cape-town-health-48046e5255cc3e4fa27455fc12ab5e52" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Africa tries to end vaccine inequity by replicating its own</a> (Associated Press)</p>



<p><strong><em>By Siladitya Ray, Forbes Staff</em></strong></p>


Mayor Mpho Moerane launches mass vaccination programme in South Africa

Moderna Agrees To Sell 110 Million Covid Vaccine Doses To African Nations Amid Questions About Vaccine Equity


<p><strong>Stéphane Bancel says data showing 95% efficacy for his company’s vaccine means that it may be able to start distributing its vaccine in late December, pending a green light from the FDA.</strong></p>



<p class="has-drop-cap"><span class="has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color">M</span>oderna CEO Stéphane Bancel slept for 3 hours on Sunday night. At 4:00 am, he went for a run, and then a few hours later led an all-company meeting. The subject: preliminary data from Moderna’s phase 3 trial of a Covid-19 vaccine, which found that the vaccine was about 95% effective at preventing the illness. Bancel says that some people in America may start getting vaccinated as early as next month.  </p>



<p>“I couldn’t have expected better results,” Bancel says. To top it off, the data showed that 11 people in the placebo arm of the trial contracted severe Covid-19, but no one in the vaccinated group got a severe form of the disease. “It means that if you get the Moderna vaccine, you have a 95% chance of getting no disease, and if you do get it you will get a mild disease,” he says. “That’s fantastic.”</p>



<p>It’s also good news for Bancel personally, who owns roughly 9% of the company. As the stock rose 10% today, Bancel’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/stephane-bancel/?sh=5b3965e73742">net worth</a>&nbsp;increased to $3 billion. Others have profited as well. MIT scientist&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/giacomotognini/2020/11/12/mit-scientist-bob-langer-becomes-a-billionaire-thanks-to-moderna-stock-rally/?sh=4d1864563a90">Robert Langer</a>, who cofounded Moderna and has a 3% stake in the company, saw his net worth increase to about $1.2 billion. Harvard professor and 3.5% equity stake owner&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/giacomotognini/2020/05/16/exclusive-harvard-professor-who-became-a-billionaire-thanks-to-moderna-talks-about-his-investing/?sh=4b3044a36b8d">Timothy Springer</a>, an early investor in the company, is now worth $1.6 billion.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The key to success seems to be Moderna’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/leahrosenbaum/2020/05/08/fueled-by-500-million-in-federal-cash-moderna-races-to-make-1-billion-doses-of-an-unproven-cure/?sh=21eae65d79dc">mRNA technology</a>, which relies on messenger RNA to deliver instructions to the cells in your body. These cells then produce small parts of the Covid-19 virus that are just enough to trigger the immune system, producing antibodies and memory cells that will leap into action if you come in contact with the virus again. The study data seems to suggest this should help people across the board. The trial consisted of 30,000 people in total, with broad diversity in racial and ethnic makeup, as well as age (around 7,000 were over 65, the group most at risk for severe forms of the disease).</p>



<p>Moderna began work on its Covid-19 vaccine in January, and shipped its first batch to the National Institute of Health for a phase one study just 42 days later. That’s incredibly fast, considering that most vaccines take years to make. (For more detail, see our<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/leahrosenbaum/2020/05/08/fueled-by-500-million-in-federal-cash-moderna-races-to-make-1-billion-doses-of-an-unproven-cure/?sh=21eae65d79dc"> in-depth feature</a> from May.) And Moderna isn’t the only one making swift progress: Last week, Pfizer released results that found its mRNA vaccine, produced in partnership with German company BioNTech, was 90% effective at preventing Covid-19. The results validated a <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/nathanvardi/2020/05/20/the-man-betting-1-billion-that-pfizer-can-deliver-a-vaccine-by-this-fall/?sh=602b2677382e">$1 billion bet</a> that Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla made last spring on the project.</p>



<p>“[It’s a] pretty impressive outcome,” says Alan Carr, a biotech analyst at Needham, about Moderna’s data. “There seems to be a pattern with the two mRNA vaccines which suggests the technology is pretty helpful for infectious diseases.”&nbsp;</p>



<p>But Bancel doesn’t feel like he’s in competition with Pfizer — or any other vaccine company, for that matter. “As I’ve said all along since we started chasing this virus in January, no one company can supply the planet,” Bancel says. “We need three or four vaccines to make it to the finish line&#8230;the success of Pfizer is a great thing for the world and for the country.”&nbsp;</p>



<p>Carr agrees: “For Covid-19, I think demand is going to outstrip supply,” he says. “Both of these vaccines will be sought after.”</p>



<p>Perhaps some of the lack of competitive feeling stems from Moderna’s global partnerships. The company has already entered agreements to supply several countries with Covid-19 vaccines, including the U.S., the E.U., Japan and Canada. While the deals with several of the countries remain a secret, the Trump administration announced in August that it reached a deal to buy 100 million doses of Moderna’s vaccine for about $1.5 billion.</p>



<p>Unlike Pfizer, which has done most of its research and clinical trials in-house, Moderna has partnered closely with the U.S. government since the early days of the pandemic. Bancel says that the company worked closely with Dr. Fauci’s team at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease to conduct its clinical trials. The federal government’s Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), gave the company a little less than $1 billion to study the vaccine. All of this government money leads to a vaccine that costs the government about $25 per dose, and will likely be given for free to the public according to Bancel. He says that they have “millions of doses” that are ready to distribute. Pharmacy chains like Walgreens and CVS, plus McKesson Corporation, the largest distributor of the flu vaccine in the U.S, are already studying how to most efficiently distribute the vaccine.</p>



<p>Moderna still has a few hurdles to overcome before the vaccine will be available to the public. First, it needs to finish its phase three clinical trial, provide the data to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and get emergency authorization to distribute the vaccine. Bancel estimates that the phase three trial will meet a key data target within the next two weeks, and plans to file with the FDA for an emergency use authorization in late November or early December (the trial itself will last another two years as participants’ health continues to be monitored). If that time frame holds, some people in the U.S. — likely healthcare workers at first — could start receiving the vaccine by the end of 2020.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Experts have also worried that Moderna’s vaccine will need to be refrigerated at low temperatures, around -4° Fahrenheit<strong>,&nbsp;</strong>which could cause issues with the supply chain. The company put at least some of those fears to rest this morning, when it announced new data that shows its vaccine can be kept in a standard refrigerator for up to 30 days. This could be an advantage over Pfizer, whose Covid-19 vaccine must be stored at -94° Fahrenheit.</p>



<p>Finally, there is also the risk that the Covid-19 virus could mutate, rendering the current vaccine ineffective. This doesn’t worry Bancel. “The adaptation to new strains is possible” he says, “but mRNA is fantastic because you can just swap a new strain and run with it.” He expects that if another version of Covid-19 began making the rounds, it would take Moderna even fewer than its current 42 days to create a vaccine.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Right now, however, all those worries are for the future. After a hectic day, Bancel is excited about the prospect of finally getting some rest this evening. “I’m looking forward to going home tonight and having a nice bottle of wine and going to bed early,” he says.</p>



<p><em>-By Leah Rosenbaum, Forbes Staff</em></p>


Tag: Moderna Vaccine

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