Moderna stock toppled Friday on mixed results for its flu shot — a rival to experimental vaccines from BioNTech, CureVac and Sanofi.
The four companies are all using newer messenger RNA technology in an attempt to create annual flu shots in a more rapid fashion than traditional platforms. They hope to eventually combine the flu shots with vaccines against Covid and, potentially, respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV.
In the final-phase study, Moderna compared its candidate to an already licensed seasonal flu shot. The Moderna vaccine showed promise in influenza A, but failed to make a difference against influenza B. Influenza A is the more dominant strain and caused 99% of the flu infections in Moderna's study. The company says it has already updated the vaccine in the hopes of tackling influenza B.
On the stock market today, Moderna stock tumbled 3.3% and closed at 166.60.
Moderna Stock: Influenza A Remains Dominant
In its test, Moderna looked at two criteria: the number of patients to develop virus-blocking antibodies and the amount of antibodies created.
When it comes to influenza A, Moderna's vaccine proved superior to the standard vaccine in generating antibodies against two strains called A/H3N2 and A/H1N1. It also led to a higher level of antibodies capable of handling the former. But against the latter, Moderna's shot was merely equal in terms of antibody levels.
On both measures, Moderna's experimental shot looked equal to the licensed comparison vaccine for B/Victoria and B/Yamagata strains of influenza.
Stephen Hoge, Moderna's president, called the results "an important step forward in the development of mRNA-based influenza vaccine." But Moderna stock dropped to its lowest point since November.
"We are encouraged by the safety and tolerability profile, and by the strong immunogenicity results against influenza A viruses which cause the overwhelming majority of flu-related disease in older adults," he said in a written statement.
More Side Effects In Moderna Shot
SVB Securities analyst Mani Foroohar also noted Moderna's vaccine led to more side effects than the traditional shot. Seven out of 10 recipients of Moderna's vaccine reported side effects vs. 48% among those who received the licensed vaccine.
The majority of side effects were mild and included pain, swelling, headache, aches and fatigue.
"Only significantly superior efficacy results would justify use of (Moderna's shot) due to its challenging safety and tolerability profile, given the large number of available alternatives," he said in a note to clients.
Foroohar has a market perform rating on Moderna stock.
Follow Allison Gatlin on Twitter at @IBD_AGatlin.
