Moderna announced the second-quarter profitability and sales that exceeded forecasts, with its COVID-19 vaccine remaining 93 percent effective six months after the second dose. The vaccine’s protection appears to be sustained for a long time after patients finish the normal two-dose regimen, according to a final analysis of the company’s late-stage research, released on Thursday. The effectiveness level of 93 percent falls barely shy of the shot’s initial efficacy of 94 percent.
Concerns about the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccinations have sparked debate of booster injections, and some governments have begun to give third doses to susceptible populations. On Wednesday, however, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged for a pause on such measures until more people in impoverished countries had been immunise. Moderna’s Spikevax injection may be limited as a result of the advice.
Moderna’s stock has tripled since the start of the year, and the company’s market worth surpassed $100 billion for the first time on July 14. Last month, the stock was added to the S&P 500, and it has been the index’s top performer this calendar year.
As the biotech expands, it will search for ways to buy or licence technology that will help it improve its platform. Moderna, which has more than $12 billion in cash and assets, said in a presentation that it will focus on nucleic acid technologies including mRNA, gene editing, and gene therapy.
