Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) Stock Price Down 7% – Here’s Why

Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) shares traded down 7% on Thursday. The company traded as low as $229.69 and last traded at $231.35. 6,946,085 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 45% from the average daily volume of 12,594,145 shares. The stock had previously closed at $248.69.

Trending Headlines about Moderna

These are some of the MRNA headlines that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Moderna’s personalized cancer vaccine and broader oncology pipeline are potential growth drivers beyond COVID-19 products, though they remain longer-term opportunities. Article: Moderna Lays Out Oncology-Driven Growth Plan
• Neutral Sentiment: The company’s Analyst Day also covered commercial growth, manufacturing readiness and mid-term financial objectives, but the investment case depends on translating pipeline progress into meaningful sales. Article: Moderna Outlines Next Phase of Growth
• Negative Sentiment: The main near-term concern is that the raised 2026 outlook may still be below analyst expectations, raising the risk of a future sales shortfall. That concern appears to be outweighing the improved guidance. Article: Why Moderna Stock Dropped on Thursday

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on MRNA. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Moderna in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. Loop Capital set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Moderna in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Moderna in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Moderna from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Moderna in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.75.

Moderna Price Performance

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $198.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -32.58 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 3.47 and a current ratio of 3.62.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 6th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.10) by $1.48. The business had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $890.25 million. Moderna had a negative net margin of 110.46% and a negative return on equity of 25.79%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.51) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Moderna, Inc. will post -5.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Moderna news, insider Shannon Klinger sold 3,471 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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. The trade was a 4.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, 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, CFO Jamey Mock sold 34,836 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.49, for a total transaction of $4,685,093.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,985,343.75. This represents a 36.98% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 197,251 shares of company stock worth $33,875,904 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 10.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. CENTRAL TRUST Co increased its holdings in Moderna by 36.5% in the third quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Costello Asset Management INC boosted its position in shares of Moderna by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 966 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Moderna by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 886 shares of the company’s stock worth $171,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of Moderna by 53.1% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 222 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dogwood Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Moderna by 158.8% in the 3rd quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. 75.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Moderna

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. The company’s commercial products include Spikevax, a vaccine against COVID-19, and mRESVIA, a vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Moderna also researches potential mRNA-based vaccines and treatments for infectious diseases, cancer, and rare diseases. Founded in 2010 as Moderna Therapeutics, the company is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.