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

Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) saw unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock traders bought 221,493 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 169% compared to the average volume of 82,442 put options.

Moderna Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MRNA opened at $34.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 4.20 and a current ratio of 4.39. Moderna has a 12-month low of $31.94 and a 12-month high of $170.47. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $40.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.75.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.89) by $1.92. The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.25 billion. Moderna had a negative net margin of 43.77% and a negative return on equity of 17.68%. The business’s revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.39) EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Moderna will post -9.3 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on MRNA. Wolfe Research began coverage on Moderna in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $40.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Moderna from $59.00 to $45.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Leerink Partners cut their target price on Moderna from $31.00 to $27.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $41.00 price target on shares of Moderna in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Moderna in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $75.58.

Insider Transactions at Moderna

In other news, insider Shannon Thyme Klinger sold 1,418 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.79, for a total transaction of $60,676.22. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 19,717 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $843,690.43. This represents 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 available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 2,664 shares of company stock valued at $115,210 over the last 90 days. 15.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Moderna

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Intrinsic Value Partners LLC raised its holdings in Moderna by 91.1% in the 3rd quarter. Intrinsic Value Partners LLC now owns 51,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,435,000 after acquiring an additional 24,505 shares in the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. bought a new position in shares of Moderna in the third quarter worth $3,550,000. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Moderna by 341.3% in the third quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 49,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,318,000 after purchasing an additional 38,400 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its position in Moderna by 11.6% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,614,313 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,885,000 after purchasing an additional 167,596 shares during the period. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its stake in Moderna by 148.2% during the third quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 116,088 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,758,000 after buying an additional 69,313 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.33% of the company’s stock.

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.