VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Takes $4.44 Million Position in Moderna, Inc. $MRNA

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 63,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,436,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRNA. Allied Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Moderna during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Archer Investment Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Moderna during the second quarter worth about $36,000. Canton Hathaway LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moderna during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Moderna during the second quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Moderna during the second quarter worth about $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.33% of the company’s stock.

Moderna Price Performance

Shares of MRNA opened at $135.61 on Thursday. Moderna, Inc. has a twelve month low of $22.28 and a twelve month high of $176.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $89.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.14 billion, a PE ratio of -16.97 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported ($1.97) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.03) by $0.06. The business had revenue of $145.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $102.93 million. Moderna had a negative return on equity of 28.30% and a negative net margin of 141.43%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($2.13) EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Moderna, Inc. will post -6.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moderna

In other news, President Stephen Hoge sold 53,336 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.37, for a total transaction of $2,739,870.32. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 1,483,848 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $76,225,271.76. This represents a 3.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Shannon Klinger sold 3,471 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.95, for a total transaction of $485,766.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 74,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,374,353.55. This represents a 4.47% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Corporate insiders own 10.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRNA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Moderna in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Wolfe Research raised Moderna from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded Moderna from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $40.00 to $81.00 in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Brookline Capital Markets reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Moderna in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, William Blair initiated coverage on shares of Moderna in a research note on Friday, August 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Moderna presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.72.

About Moderna

Moderna, Inc is a biotechnology company that develops messenger RNA (mRNA) medicines and vaccines. Its platform is designed to provide cells with instructions to produce proteins that may help prevent or treat infectious diseases, cancer and other medical conditions.

The company’s commercial products include Spikevax, an mRNA vaccine for COVID-19, and mRESVIA, an mRNA vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in older adults. Moderna also maintains a pipeline of investigational programs in areas such as seasonal influenza, cytomegalovirus, oncology and rare diseases.

Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Moderna serves markets in the United States and internationally through regulatory approvals, commercial partnerships and distribution arrangements.