Moderna MRNA shares soared 10.9% in the last trading session to close at $35.66. The move was backed by solid volume with far more shares changing hands than in a normal session. This compares to the stock's 15% gain over the past four weeks.
This upside comes after third-party articles reported that BofA Securities raised its target price on Moderna’s stock to $24 from $21, while maintaining an Underperform rating. According to these articles, the firm’s analysts acknowledged the company’s cost-cutting measures but still expect the stock to be influenced by COVID-19 vaccine uptake and sentiment in the near term. Reportedly, BofA analysts expect COVID-19 headwinds to continue pressuring Moderna as it heads into the 2026/2027 season.
This biotechnology company is expected to post quarterly loss of $2.79 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -11.6%. Revenues are expected to be $683.27 million, down 29.3% from the year-ago quarter.
While earnings and revenue growth expectations are important in evaluating the potential strength in a stock, empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.
For Moderna, the consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 5.8% higher over the last 30 days to the current level. And a positive trend in earnings estimate revision usually translates into price appreciation. So, make sure to keep an eye on MRNA going forward to see if this recent jump can turn into more strength down the road.
The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>
Moderna belongs to the Zacks Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry. Another stock from the same industry, NovoCure NVCR, closed the last trading session 3.8% higher at $14.29. Over the past month, NVCR has returned 14.2%.
For NovoCure, the consensus EPS estimate for the upcoming report has remained unchanged over the past month at -$0.39. This represents a change of +36.1% from what the company reported a year ago. NovoCure currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
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Moderna, Inc. (MRNA): Free Stock Analysis Report NovoCure Limited (NVCR): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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