Moderna Stock Rises On Booster Request; But Is A Fourth Shot Needed?

Moderna (MRNA) asked the Food and Drug Administration to authorize its Covid booster for all adults — a much wider request than Pfizer‘s (PFE) — and Moderna stock popped Friday.

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The request is based on data generated in the U.S. and Israel following the emergence of omicron, Moderna said in a news release. Pfizer and its partner, BioNTech (BNTX), asked the FDA to sign off on another booster shot for people age 65 and older.

This would bring the total number of Moderna shots up to four. The FDA allows a first booster shot six months after the primary two-dose series. People with compromised immune systems can also receive a full-size third shot.

On the stock market today, Moderna stock jumped 6.3% to 178.93.

Moderna Stock: Is Another Booster Necessary?

A study of U.S. health care workers suggests there’s a limited benefit to a fourth dose, according to RBC Capital Markets analyst Brian Abrahams. Pfizer’s and Moderna’s shots were 30% and 11% protective against all infections, respectively, and 43% and 31% effective against symptomatic infections.

This suggests “some degree of protection conferred by a fourth dose during the omicron wave — though likely only making up for immunity lost over time and not appearing to substantially boost protection,” he said in a report to clients.

Moderna stock retook its 50-day moving average on Thursday for the first time since December. On Friday, shares gapped higher.

Further, the U.S. is experiencing very low per-capita Covid case counts, he said. This correlates with a drop in hospitalizations and deaths, and supports the case for rapid reopening efforts, he said. Trends in Europe suggest the U.S. will see an increase in the coming weeks due to the B.A. 2 variant.

“Though the low starting point, post-omicron/booster protection vs. severe disease, increasing availability of antivirals and shift towards more outdoor activities should all help blunt the size and impact of any spring mini-wave,” he said.

Shares Hit A Year-Low Recently

RBC’s Abrahams says 65% of the U.S. is fully vaccinated and 29% have received a booster shot. The numbers haven’t helped bolster Moderna stock, however.

Peter Pitts, president of the Center for Medicine in the Public Interest, questioned the need for another booster shot.

“Is an additional booster shot for the majority of vaccinated Americans the most important asset in our arsenal or an easy but incomplete answer to a more complex question?” he said in an email. “We must not take our eye off the prize of getting unvaccinated Americans to roll up their sleeves. Everything else is either a detail or a distraction.”

Moderna stock hit a year-low earlier this month. But shares have since risen, MarketSmith.com shows.

Follow Allison Gatlin on Twitter at @IBD_AGatlin.

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