Moderna (MRNA) Shares Soar After Deutsche Bank Upgrade to Hold on Valuation

Shares of Moderna (NASDAQ: MRNA) are up over 4% in pre-market trading after Deutsche Bank analyst Emmanuel Papadakis upgraded to Hold from Sell with a price target of $175.00 per share (down from $200.00).

The analyst notes that Moderna’s valuation more than halved since DB initiated coverage in October.

“That has been catalysed by a mixed guidance update with Q3, somewhat underwhelming flu data, and perception that omicron is likely to hasten the shift from pandemic to endemic scenario, all overlaid with a growth to value rotation that has continued to impact US biotech more broadly,” Papadakis said in a client note.

The new model reflects “significantly altered” mid/long-term forecasts at this stage.

“Whilst a YE22 c$30bn net cash position should provide something of a cushion, key for the recovery of sentiment will be a clearer path to additional durable long- term revenue streams of significance. With RSV/CMV P3 likely 2023 read outs and EBV still early, the question is then what may drive that re-appraisal in 2022. We can see several datapoints of note, though at this stage we are not clear whether these are likely to be sufficient ahead of those key 2023 datapoints,” the analyst added.

Moderna stock price closed at $152.54 yesterday.

By Senad Karaahmetovic | [email protected]

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