Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) Shares Down 7.9% Following Analyst Downgrade

Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA)’s stock price dropped 7.9% on Thursday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $96.00 to $78.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Moderna traded as low as $33.12 and last traded at $33.07. Approximately 7,547,098 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 41% from the average daily volume of 12,792,683 shares. The stock had previously closed at $35.90.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Leerink Partners decreased their target price on Moderna from $31.00 to $27.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Moderna in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $40.00 price objective on shares of Moderna in a report on Tuesday. Berenberg Bank lifted their price objective on Moderna from $33.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded Moderna from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $60.63.

Insider Transactions at Moderna

In other news, insider Shannon Thyme Klinger sold 1,418 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.79, for a total transaction of $60,676.22. Following the sale, the insider now owns 19,717 shares in the company, valued at approximately $843,690.43. The trade was a 6.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,664 shares of company stock worth $115,210. Insiders own 15.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Moderna

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of MRNA. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its stake in shares of Moderna by 295.0% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 786 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 587 shares during the last quarter. Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Moderna during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Moderna by 286.2% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 896 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 664 shares during the last quarter. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Moderna during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. grew its stake in shares of Moderna by 51.2% during the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 1,013 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.33% of the company’s stock.

Moderna Stock Down 6.0 %

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $38.17 and a 200 day moving average of $53.20. The stock has a market cap of $12.98 billion, a PE ratio of -3.63 and a beta of 1.59.

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.