COVID-19 Vaccine sales Push Moderna Q4 Profit To $12 Bn

Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine brought in nearly $ 7 billion in the final quarter of 2021, and the drugmaker says it has signed purchase agreements for another $19 billion in sales this year.

The vaccine maker's COVID-19 shots, which are now available in more than 70 countries, totalled $17.7 billion in sales last year, their first full year on the market.

Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine is the only product the drugmaker has on the market.

Late last month, US regulators gave full approval to the vaccine, which is now being marketed under the name Spikevax.

But the company is still waiting for US regulators to authorise the vaccine's use in 12- to 17-year olds, even though several other countries have authorised that expanded use. Regulators are studying the rare risk of a heart inflammation that has shown up in some people who have received the shots.

More than 75 million people have become fully vaccinated with Moderna's shot in the United States since its emergency authorisation over a year ago, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Another 40 million have received booster doses.

In the recently completed fourth quarter, Moderna earned $4.87 billion on $7.21 billion in revenue, while earnings per share came to $11.29.

Analysts expect, on average, earnings of $ 9.96 per share on $ 6.8 billion in revenue, according to FactSet.

For the full year, Moderna earned $ 12.2 billion, compared to a net loss of $ 747 million in 2020.

For 2022, the Cambridge, Massachusetts company said in November it expects revenue between $ 17 billion and $ 22 billion.

Analysts forecast $21.5 billion in revenue.

The company said Thursday that its purchase agreements for the new year include an additional $ 3 billion in options for any potential updated vaccine boosters.

Shares of Moderna Inc. tumbled more than 6% in premarket trading. Broader US trading indexes dropped more than 2% after Russia launched a military attack on Ukraine.

(PTI)