AP – COVID-19 vaccine sales helped Moderna triple its net income in a better-than-expected first quarter.
The vaccine maker said on Wednesday that revenue from its coronavirus preventive shots jumped to USD5.92 billion from USD1.73 billion in last year’s quarter, when the vaccines were debuting in most markets.
More than 217 million doses of Moderna’s Spikevax vaccine have been administered in the United States (US), where it is one of three approved options for adults.
Pfizer’s Comrinaty shots are the most commonly used, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A vaccine from Johnson & Johnson ranks third.
About USD5 billion in Spikevax sales came from outside the US in the quarter.
Moderna is seeking authorisation in the US for its shots to be used in adolescents and children, something dozens of other countries have already granted.
The company also has several vaccines in late-stage clinical studies, including a potential flu shot and a COVID-19 booster updated to protect against the evolving virus.
Moderna said on Wednesday it could have three commercial product launches over the next two or three years, starting this fall.
In the first quarter, Moderna earned USD3.7 billion, compared with USD.2 billion in the same period last year. On a per-share basis, the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company said it had profit of USD8.58.
The results topped Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of nine analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of USD5.18 per share.
The biotechnology company posted total revenue of USD6.07 billion in the period, which beat average Street forecasts for USD4.5 billion.
While vaccine sales jumped compared to last year, they slid USD1 billion from the fourth quarter of 2021, when customers sought boosters and many children began getting shots.
Research costs and other expenses also jumped in the first quarter, as the company built out its business. Moderna now has about 3,200 full-time workers, more than twice the total employed at the end of last year’s quarter.
Moderna also said on Wednesday that it has signed purchase agreements for about USD21 billion in sales for 2022.
Company shares climbed 40 cents to USD146.93 on Wednesday afternoon while broader indexes rose slightly. The shares had already tumbled 42 per cent so far this year.
