Moderna's Coronavirus Program In Spotlight Ahead Of Vaccine Developer's Q3 Report

Moderna Inc (NASDAQ: MRNA), which is among the frontrunners in the race to develop a coronavirus vaccine, is set to release its third-quarter results Thursday before the market open.

Q3 Expectations For Moderna: Analysts, on average, expect the company to report a loss per share of 43 cents on revenue of $77.51 million.

One year ago, the company reported a loss of 37 cents per share and revenue of $18.36 million.

Since Moderna does not yet have a commercial product on the market, revenue came from collaborations and grants.

The company exited the second quarter ended June 30 with cash, cash equivalents and investments of $3.07 billion thanks to a $1.3-billion equity offering and grants from various federal agencies.

More than the headline metrics, the Street is likely to focus on any updates on the coronavirus vaccine program.

Related Link: Moderna, Pfizer Have 2-Month Lead Over Coronavirus Vaccine Competitors: Analyst

Moderna In Final Lap Of Vaccine Process: Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Moderna's coronavirus vaccine candidate mRNA-1273 is being evaluated in a late-stage study.

The company has already released positive preclinical data and interim Phase 1 data for the vaccine candidate.

Recently, Moderna announced completion of enrollment into the 30,000-strong, multicenter trial.

Tthe first interim analysis should come after 53 events, according to Moderna's Phase 3 clinical trial design. 

The sell-side is modeling for emergency use authorization before the year end following an interim readout in November.

Needham analyst Alan Carr estimates mRNA-1273 sales of $400 million in the fourth quarter, $2 billion in 2021 and $1 billion in 2022.

On the regulatory front, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency of the U.K. has started to review the company's rolling BLA submission for mRNA-1273.

The company has also stitched up supply agreements, with a recent one being a deal with the Qatar government.

Given the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices meeting is scheduled for Friday, this week is an eventful one for the company and the stock.

Unlike some big pharma vaccine developers, Moderna's vaccine program has progressed smoothly date, without any safety scares. 

The company's pipeline includes several other promising candidates.

MRNA Price Action Stock: Since the start of the year, Moderna's shares have gained a whopping 360%.

Analysts, on average, rate the stock a Buy and the average price target is $92.54, with the highest estimate being $136.

At last check Wednesday, Moderna shares were trading down 5.67% to $66.66. 

Related Link: Moderna Analysts Say COVID-19 Vaccine Contract Reflects Pricing Risk, Shows Ability To Scale