Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA)
Following a 20% gain, the share price of Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) was deemed to have “caught up” with the company’s valuation, which led to Chardan Capital Markets lowering their recommendation for the Moderna stock to Neutral from Buy. This caused the stock to drop by approximately 2% in the morning hours of Wednesday.
In response to positive mid-stage data for its personalized mRNA cancer vaccine in combination with Merck’s (MRK) immunotherapy Keytruda, Moderna stock surged on Tuesday, triggering similar gains in its rivals focused on messenger-RNA-based cancer vaccines. These gains were a direct result of Moderna’s positive data.
The randomized clinical study results with patients with melanoma on their skin showed that the treatment combination reduced the risk of cancer recurrence or death by 44% compared to the use of Keytruda alone.
Geulah Livshits, an analyst at Chardan, stated, “All of this being said, with the market’s positive reception of the data, the share price has caught up with our valuation.”
Despite this, Livshits maintains a hopeful outlook on the potential of mRNA technology in developing vaccines for infectious diseases and its applications in cancer, autoimmune illness, and rare disease.
The price target for Moderna stock has been increased by Chardan to $191 per share, up from $186. This increase is due to improved forecasts for the company’s oncology franchise.
However, the analyst has decided to provide a neutral rating to Moderna stock, with the caveat that this rating is contingent upon more clarity on the company’s oncology approach and updates on its COVID, flu, and respiratory syncytial virus projects.
Pfizer (PFE), Moderna’s competitor in the COVID vaccine arena, forecasted that its mRNA vaccine franchise may cater to a $10 billion to $15 billion commercial market potential by the year 2030, which caused Moderna stock to fall before the data readout for its cancer vaccine.
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Author Shariq Khan 
