Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) Trading Up 6.6% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Moderna's stock price rose by 6.6% during trading, closing at $28.46, despite a significant drop in trading volume compared to average levels.
• Institutional investors hold 75.33% of Moderna's stock, with several increasing their positions significantly in the second quarter.
• JPMorgan and UBS have set varying price targets for Moderna's stock, indicating a mixed outlook among analysts, with a current consensus rating of "Hold".

Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 6.6% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $28.54 and last traded at $28.46. Approximately 5,036,272 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average daily volume of 10,767,132 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.69.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on MRNA. UBS Group dropped their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $26.00 price objective on shares of Moderna in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Moderna in a research report on Friday, August 1st. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI set a $32.00 target price on Moderna in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Moderna from $40.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $43.59.

Moderna Stock Performance

The firm's 50 day moving average is $29.19 and its 200-day moving average is $29.24. The firm has a market cap of $10.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.57 and a beta of 1.83.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The company reported ($2.13) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($2.99) by $0.86. Moderna had a negative net margin of 94.31% and a negative return on equity of 25.96%. The firm had revenue of $142.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $116.26 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($3.33) earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 41.1% on a year-over-year basis. Moderna has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Moderna, Inc. will post -9.61 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MRNA. S Bank Fund Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of Moderna in the first quarter worth about $25,000. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its stake in Moderna by 94.1% during the 2nd quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 920 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Moderna by 348.8% in the 2nd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 956 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 743 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new position in Moderna in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC bought a new position in Moderna in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. 75.33% of the stock is 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.