Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) Given Consensus Rating of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the twenty ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $32.3333.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised Moderna from a “market perform” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Moderna in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Moderna from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Moderna from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Moderna in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th.

Moderna Stock Performance

Shares of Moderna stock opened at $50.03 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $19.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.88 and a beta of 1.33. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $48.95 and its 200-day moving average is $35.73. Moderna has a one year low of $22.28 and a one year high of $59.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 3.29 and a quick ratio of 3.22.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 13th. The company reported ($2.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.79) by $0.68. Moderna had a negative return on equity of 30.15% and a negative net margin of 145.16%.The business had revenue of $678.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $611.14 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($2.91) earnings per share. Moderna’s quarterly revenue was down 33.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Moderna will post -9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moderna

In other news, President Stephen Hoge sold 160,009 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.84, for a total value of $7,814,839.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the president owned 1,457,427 shares in the company, valued at $71,180,734.68. This trade represents a 9.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 10.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Moderna

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MRNA. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board grew its stake in Moderna by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 15,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $463,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Moderna by 39.7% during the 4th quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 1,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of Moderna by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 6,785 shares of the company’s stock worth $200,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Moderna by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,732 shares of the company’s stock valued at $405,000 after buying an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its holdings in shares of Moderna by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 2,640 shares of the company’s stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 382 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.33% of the company’s stock.

Moderna Company Profile

Moderna, Inc is a biotechnology company headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, specializing in messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines. The company’s platform leverages synthetic mRNA to instruct cells to produce proteins that can prevent or treat diseases. Since its founding in 2010, Moderna has advanced from early-stage research into a broad pipeline of vaccine and therapeutic candidates designed to address infectious diseases, rare genetic disorders and chronic illnesses.

Moderna’s flagship product is its mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine, which was the first of its kind to receive emergency use authorization and later full approval in multiple jurisdictions.