Why Moderna Stock Was So Healthy This Week

Key Points

• The company was pleased to report the findings of a late-stage clinical trial of its advanced flu vaccine.

• This might not be enough to turn around the fortunes of the developer of go-to COVID-19 vaccine Spikevax, however.

Moderna (NASDAQ: MRNA), the next-generation healthcare company most famous for developing the Spikevax coronavirus vaccine, was an uncharacteristically popular stock. Investors piled into its shares over the week, sending it to a more than 12% gain over the period, according to data compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence. Positive news from the lab was a significant factor in this.

Flu fighter

On Monday, Moderna published the results of a late-stage study of mRNA-1010, its seasonal flu vaccine. In a phase 3 clinical trial the vaccine, developed using Moderna's signature mRNA-based approach, produced a more robust immune response than a standard flu jab currently available on the market.

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Image source: Getty Images.

That surely came as a relief to Moderna investors, since the company's latest stock-rattling news was its withdrawal of a Food and Drug Administration application for a combination COVID-19/flu vaccine in May. At the time, the company pledged to submit a new application based on efficacy data from the stand-alone trial.

Along with the latest findings for mRNA-1010, Moderna said that it would also resubmit its application for the combination vaccine.

As for the flu shot alone, in the press release detailing the trial's results the company quoted CEO Stéphane Bancel as saying that they "are a significant milestone in our effort to reduce the burden of influenza in older adults."

Waiting for further development(s)

Although this latest development is the good news Moderna shareholders have been waiting for quite some time to receive, I personally don't think it makes the company's stock a buy in and of itself, as I can't imagine a new flu vaccine will light the world on fire.

Having said that, Moderna does have an admirably loaded slate of development programs, so if one or several show promise the shares might become more enticing.

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Eric Volkman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Moderna. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.