Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) Stock Price Expected to Rise, The Goldman Sachs Group Analyst Says

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs raised Moderna’s price target from $120 to $137 but maintained a “neutral” rating; the new target still implied 39.46% downside from the reported $226.30 share price.
• Analyst sentiment remained mixed, with seven Buy, fifteen Hold, and four Sell ratings, producing a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $101.45.
• Moderna exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting adjusted EPS of $1.97 loss versus a projected $2.03 loss and revenue of $145 million versus the $102.93 million consensus estimate.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by The Goldman Sachs Group from $120.00 to $137.00 in a research note issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group's target price would indicate a potential downside of 39.46% from the company's current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on MRNA. William Blair initiated coverage on shares of Moderna in a research report on Friday, August 28th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Bradesco Corretora upgraded shares of Moderna to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $130.00 price target on shares of Moderna in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Evercore boosted their price objective on shares of Moderna from $50.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Singular Research upgraded Moderna to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Moderna currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $101.45.

Moderna Price Performance

Shares of MRNA opened at $226.30 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $88.67. The firm has a market cap of $90.35 billion, a PE ratio of -28.32 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. Moderna has a 1-year low of $22.28 and a 1-year high of $227.46.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported ($1.97) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($2.03) by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $145.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $102.93 million. Moderna had a negative return on equity of 28.30% and a negative net margin of 141.43%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted ($2.13) EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Moderna will post -6.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moderna

In other Moderna news, insider Shannon Klinger sold 3,471 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.95, for a total value of $485,766.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 74,129 shares in the company, valued at $10,374,353.55. This represents a 4.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 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 James M. Mock sold 34,836 shares of Moderna stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.49, for a total transaction of $4,685,093.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 59,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,985,343.75. The trade was a 36.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 118,882 shares of company stock valued at $16,862,280 over the last ninety days. 10.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in Moderna by 53.1% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 222 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its stake in shares of Moderna by 2.6% during the second quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 3,388 shares of the company's stock valued at $246,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its stake in shares of Moderna by 2.0% during the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 7,756 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,494,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in shares of Moderna by 8.8% in the third quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,976 shares of the company's stock worth $381,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Moderna by 35.1% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 801 shares of the company's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. 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.

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