Moderna Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:MRNA)

Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Traders bought 147,034 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 80% compared to the average daily volume of 81,642 call options.

Moderna Stock Performance

Moderna stock traded down $0.94 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $31.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,814,334 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,967,321. Moderna has a fifty-two week low of $23.15 and a fifty-two week high of $125.68. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $27.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $30.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.09 billion, a PE ratio of -3.58 and a beta of 1.84.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported ($2.52) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($2.92) by $0.40. The business had revenue of $108.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $130.35 million. Moderna had a negative net margin of 105.67% and a negative return on equity of 28.69%. The company's revenue was down 35.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($3.07) EPS. Equities analysts predict that Moderna will post -9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Moderna from $39.00 to $32.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Moderna from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating on shares of Moderna in a research note on Sunday, July 13th. William Blair reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Moderna in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Moderna in a research note on Sunday, July 13th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Moderna presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.61.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Moderna

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Moderna during the fourth quarter valued at $163,833,000. Voloridge Investment Management LLC raised its position in Moderna by 335.6% in the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 2,590,831 shares of the company's stock worth $107,727,000 after acquiring an additional 1,996,003 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in Moderna by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,664,634 shares of the company's stock worth $776,075,000 after acquiring an additional 1,282,469 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its position in Moderna by 170.5% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,766,398 shares of the company's stock worth $73,447,000 after acquiring an additional 1,113,455 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SHANDA ASSET MANAGEMENT HOLDINGS Ltd bought a new stake in Moderna in the first quarter worth about $28,350,000. 75.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Moderna Company Profile

Moderna, Inc, a biotechnology company, discovers, develops, and commercializes messenger RNA therapeutics and vaccines for the treatment of infectious diseases, immuno-oncology, rare diseases, autoimmune, and cardiovascular diseases in the United States, Europe, and internationally. Its respiratory vaccines include COVID-19, influenza, and respiratory syncytial virus, spikevax, and hMPV/PIV3 vaccines; latent vaccines comprise cytomegalovirus, epstein-barr virus, herpes simplex virus, varicella zoster virus, and human immunodeficiency virus vaccines; public health vaccines consists of Zika, Nipah, Mpox vaccines; and infectious diseases vaccines, such as lyme and norovirus vaccines.