Sterling Capital Management LLC Trims Stock Position in Moderna, Inc. $MRNA

Sterling Capital Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) by 43.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,078 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,166 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Moderna were worth $614,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in shares of Moderna during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Moderna in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC grew its position in Moderna by 39.7% in the 4th quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 1,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its stake in Moderna by 3,775.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 1,240 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 1,208 shares during the period. Finally, Kelleher Financial Advisors acquired a new position in Moderna in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moderna

In related news, Director Abbas Hussain sold 5,682 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.63, for a total value of $264,951.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 12,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $562,637.58. The trade was a 32.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Noubar Afeyan sold 9,263 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.84, for a total transaction of $433,878.92. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,924 shares in the company, valued at $183,800.16. The trade was a 70.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 125,088 shares of company stock valued at $6,193,713 over the last three months. Company insiders own 10.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of Moderna in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Moderna from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Moderna from $43.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Moderna in a report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $33.00 target price on Moderna in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $37.13.

Moderna Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MRNA opened at $72.50 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.41. The company’s fifty day moving average is $52.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $47.51. Moderna, Inc. has a one year low of $22.28 and a one year high of $73.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.77 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.90 and a beta of 0.94.

Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The company reported ($3.40) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($3.02) by ($0.38). Moderna had a negative net margin of 143.55% and a negative return on equity of 26.64%. The company had revenue of $389.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $236.37 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($2.52) earnings per share. Moderna’s revenue was up 260.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Moderna, Inc. will post -6.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.