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☆ Wall St set for higher open as Nvidia outweighs Fed jitters
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Johann M Cherian | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Futures cut some gains after data showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week. "Markets are tracking the earnings reports overnight from Nvidia," said Robert Pavlik, senior portfolio manager at Dakota Wealth. ET, Dow e-minis were up 39 points, or 0.12%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 15 points, or 0.38%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 106.25 points, or 0.88%. Analysts polled by Reuters predict a correction within the next three months even though they expect the S&P 500 (.SPX) to climb 5% by year-end. Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) fell 4.4% after the vaccine maker reaffirmed its annual sales forecast of $5 billion for its COVID-19 vaccines despite its fourth-quarter sales exceeding estimates.

☆ Moderna's combination skin cancer therapy receives FDA's breakthrough tag
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 22 (Reuters) - Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) said on Wednesday its experimental personalised mRNA skin cancer vaccine in combination with Merck & Co Inc's (MRK.N) drug Keytruda has received breakthrough therapy designation from U.S. regulators as an additional treatment for high risk patients. The breakthrough tag is granted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) based on data from a mid-stage study of the drug that showed the therapy reduced risk of skin cancer's recurrence or death by 44% compared with Keytruda alone. The FDA's breakthrough therapy designation is granted to expedite the development and review of drugs that are intended to treat a serious condition. The companies said they plans to initiate a late-stage study in adjuvant treatment of melanoma in 2023. Reporting by Khushi Mandowara in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli and Shailesh KuberOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ S&P 500 ends down as investors fret about interest rates
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Noel Randewich | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

S&P 500 tradingMicrosoft Corp <MFST.O> fell 1.6% and Nvidia (NVDA.O) dipped 2.8%, both weighing on the S&P 500 as the yield on 10-year Treasury notes hit a three-month high. Of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes, six rose, led by consumer staples (.SPLRCS), up 1.29%, followed by a 1% gain in Utilities (.SPLRCU). For the week, the S&P 500 fell 0.3%, the Dow lost 0.1% and the Nasdaq climbed 0.6%. Advancing issues outnumbered falling ones within the S&P 500 (.AD.SPX) by a 1.1-to-one ratio. The S&P 500 posted eight new highs and one new low; the Nasdaq recorded 75 new highs and 68 new lows.

☆ Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna gear up for 2024 London trial over COVID vaccine patents
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Ivan AlvaradoLONDON, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) and its German partner BioNTech SE (22UAy.DE) are gearing up for a 2024 trial with Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) at London's High Court in competing patent lawsuits over their rival COVID-19 vaccines. The case reached London's High Court for the first time for a preliminary hearing on Thursday, ahead of a trial which is due to take place in April 2024. Pfizer and BioNTech sued Moderna in London in September, seeking to revoke two of Moderna's patents in relation to its messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines. Moderna brought its own lawsuit that month over Pfizer and BioNTech’s Comirnaty vaccine, seeking damages for alleged infringement of its patents. Pfizer, BioNTech and Moderna are also engaged in litigation in Germany, the Netherlands and the United States.

It failed to meet its goal of non-inferiority compared to the conventional vaccine for the B/Victoria and B/Yamagata-lineage strains, the drugmaker said. "We have always said our goal is to produce a flu vaccine, and then to iterate it, and to fine tune it over time to really make it exceptional," Chief Medical Officer Paul Burton said in an interview. Seventy percent of those who received Moderna's shot reported mostly mild adverse reactions compared to 48% for the conventional flu vaccine. The company also has an ongoing late-stage efficacy study on the mRNA-1010 flu vaccine, which could have data within weeks. The flu, an infection of the nose, throat and lungs, kills 290,000 to 650,000 people worldwide annually.

☆ Moderna CEO to testify in senate on proposed vaccine price hike
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 15 (Reuters) - Senator Bernie Sanders said on Wednesday Moderna Inc's (MRNA.O) chief executive officer Stéphane Bancel will testify next month in front of the senate on the drugmaker's plans to raise the price of its coronavirus vaccine. In January, Sanders had written to Bancel to refrain from quadrupling the price of COVID-19 vaccine, after Moderna said it was considering pricing its vaccine at $110 to $130 per dose in the United States, when it shifts from government contracting to commercial distribution. Moderna also added that uninsured patient can buy the vaccine through Moderna's patient assistance program at no cost. Sanders, chairman of the Senate's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee, has railed against high drug prices and backed Medicare-for-all. Reporting by Khushi Mandowara in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra EluriOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/2] People pose with syringe with needle in front of displayed Moderna logo in this illustration taken, December 11, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationFeb 15 (Reuters) - The U.S. government should face a patent lawsuit over COVID-19 vaccines, not vaccine maker Moderna Inc (MRNA.O), the Department of Justice told a Delaware federal court on Tuesday. Moderna made the same argument last year in an unsuccessful bid to win an early dismissal of the lawsuit. Both Moderna and Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) have been the target of multiple patent lawsuits over their COVID vaccines, including a lawsuit brought by Moderna against Pfizer in August. The case is Arbutus Biopharma Corp v. Moderna Inc, U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, No.

☆ Cramer's lightning round: EMCOR Group is my kind of stock
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Krystal Hur | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Loading chart...Moderna Inc : "I think you should buy more." Loading chart...Okta Inc : "[CEO Todd McKinnon has] got to pivot first. We mean pivot, going from loss and high growth to a little less growth and profit." Loading chart...EMCOR Group Inc : "That's my kind of stock. Loading chart...AllianceBernstein Holding LP : "I think you possibly have a winner.

"When you think about traditional drug and vaccine development and longevity of sales, it's usually much more spread out," Morningstar analyst Damien Conover said. The sudden inflow of revenue should prod companies to strike deals and link up with new partners, he said. Vaccine maker Moderna also expects 2023 revenue to fall sharply. The company's only product - its messenger RNA COVID vaccine - pulled in around $18.4 billion in 2022. Eli Lilly and Co (LLY.N) made $2 billion in 2022 from monoclonal antibody COVID treatments and is not expecting any revenue from the business in 2023.

☆ Fact Check-COVID-19 vaccines do not add a ‘third strand’ of DNA
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Moderna’s mRNA COVID-19 vaccine does not alter human DNA or add a third strand to people’s DNA, as claimed in a video circulating on social media and viewed more than 400,000 times on Twitter. This gave me chills.”However, the video offers no evidence for its claim about the vaccine altering human DNA. The messenger RNA (mRNA) in approved COVID-19 vaccines does not interact with human DNA inside cells, and does not enter the cell nucleus where DNA is housed. Reuters has also addressed other false claims that mRNA vaccines alter human DNA (here, here, here). COVID-19 vaccines based on mRNA do not alter human DNA or add a third strand to the DNA double helix.

☆ Fact Check-Vaccine work before SARS-CoV-2 had a name does not prove pandemic was planned
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Users online are circulating that widely-known fact to imply the COVID-19 pandemic was planned. At timestamp 0:17-0:42, Bancel says Moderna was working on a COVID-19 vaccine before the virus had an official name, saying “I think there was no name at that time” (here). On Jan. 23, 2020, the WHO-affiliated Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) announced funding for three separate research teams to work on potential vaccines against the novel coronavirus (here). One of the research teams included a partnership between drug and vaccine developer Moderna and the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Neither the disease nor the virus that causes it had formal names until February 2020.

☆ Novavax needs 6 months to produce annual COVID shots that match new variants
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Leroy Leo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 26 (Reuters) - Novavax Inc (NVAX.O) said on Thursday it would require six months to produce a COVID-19 vaccine designed to match whichever coronavirus variants are circulating for an annual immunization program each fall season in the United States. The FDA in documents released on Monday proposed June for deciding on an annual COVID shot's make-up. It took those companies about three months to produce the currently available boosters updated to target newer Omicron subvariants. The FDA is seeking recommendations from its panel of external experts on adopting an annual COVID shot for the United States and the process for choosing the vaccine's targets each year. Reporting by Leroy Leo in Bengaluru Editing by Bill BerkrotOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S. FDA proposes shift to annual COVID vaccine shots
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

It has also asked the panel to consider the usage of two COVID vaccine shots a year for some young children, and in older adults and persons with compromised immunity. The regulator also sought its advisers' views on the need for routine selection of variants for updating the vaccine, similar to the way strains for flu vaccines are changed annually. The agency expects that simplifying the COVID vaccine composition and annual immunization schedules may contribute to less complicated vaccine deployment, fewer vaccine administration errors and less complex communication, which could potentially lead to improved vaccine coverage rates. Currently, most people in the United States need to first get two doses of the original COVID vaccine spaced 3-4 weeks apart, depending on the vaccine, followed by a booster a few months later. The FDA's proposal follows the European regulator's backing last month for the use of bivalent COVID shots for primary vaccination.

Before the market opened, U.S. economic data showed retail sales and producer prices declined more than expected in December, while production at U.S. factories fell more than expected and November output was weaker than thought. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) fell 613.89 points, or 1.81%, to 33,296.96 and the S&P 500 (.SPX) lost 62.11 points, or 1.56%, to 3,928.86. Today's economic data served as a trigger to initiate a profit taking spell and the groups with most profits to take have been the ones that have done best last year," said Stovall. Earlier in the day, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard and Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester stressed on the need to raise rates beyond 5% to bring inflation to heel. The S&P 500 posted nine new 52-week highs and 2 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 78 new highs and 20 new lows.

Markets reacted positively to data, which showed retail sales and producer prices declined more than expected in December. However, the gains were short-lived as St. Louis Fed President James Bullard and Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester stressed on the need to raise rates beyond 5% to bring inflation to heel. U.S. stock markets have started 2023 on a strong footing on hopes that a moderation in inflationary pressures could give the Fed cover to dial down the size of its interest rate hikes. Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 1.23-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and a 1.53-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P index recorded nine new 52-week highs and two new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 63 new highs and 12 new lows.

☆ Moderna’s RSV Vaccine Reduces Risk of Respiratory Diseases, Study Finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Peter Loftus | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Moderna says it will apply in the coming months for regulatory approval to sell its vaccine against RSV. An experimental vaccine from Moderna Inc. significantly reduced the risk of a viral respiratory disease among older adults in a large clinical trial, the latest promising sign in drugmakers’ efforts to fight the deadly RSV virus. Based on the results, the Cambridge, Mass., company said Tuesday it would apply in the coming months for U.S. regulatory approval to sell its vaccine against RSV, which stands for respiratory syncytial virus. If regulators approve, it could become available by early 2024, the company said.

☆ Davos 2023: Moderna CEO says he wants to have mRNA factory on every continent
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Companies Moderna Inc FollowDAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Moderna (MRNA.O) chief executive Stephane Bancel said he would like to have factories making vaccines based on its messenger RNA technology on every continent as the U.S. company prepares to build four facilities. "We're talking to a couple more countries because I would really like on every continent to have MRNA capacity," he said on a panel at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos. The company is building or planning to build factories in Canada, Australia, Britain and Kenya, he said. Its COVID-19 vaccines are made in the United States and Switzerland. For daily Davos updates in your inbox sign up for the Reuters Daily Briefing hereReporting by Josephine Mason and Natalie Grover; Editing by Alexander SmithOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

A reading from the Commerce Department showed retail sales fell 1.1% in December against expectations of a 0.8% drop, while a separate report showed producer prices declined more than expected in December. Traders' bets of a 25-basis point rate hike rose after the data, while U.S. 10-year Treasury yields fell to a four-month low. Analysts now expect year-over-year earnings from S&P 500 companies to decline 2.6% for the quarter, according to Refinitiv data, compared with a 1.6% decline in the beginning of 2023. Among major S&P 500 sectors, consumer discretionary stocks (.SPLRCD) were up 1%, leading gains. U.S. stock markets have started 2023 on a strong footing on hopes that a moderation in inflationary pressures could give the Fed cover to dial down the size of its interest rate hikes.

RSV, which produces symptoms similar to a cold but can be fatal for young children and older adults, causes about 14,000 deaths annually in adults ages 65 and older. Moderna, Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) and GSK Plc (GSK.L) are racing to get their RSV vaccines to market first. Pfizer's RSV vaccine was found to be 66.7% effective against two or more symptoms in late-stage trials. "It's very exciting to see progress in RSV vaccines in older adults, and I think both of those vaccines have shown pretty remarkable results as well," Hoge said. The RSV vaccine market could be worth more than $10 billion globally, half of which would come from the United States, according to Cowen analyst Tyler Van Buren.

☆ Sen. Sanders asks Moderna not to hike COVID vaccine price
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Michael Erman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Boxes containing the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine are prepared to be shipped at the McKesson distribution center in Olive Branch, Mississippi, U.S. December 20, 2020. Senator Bernie Sanders sent Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) a letter this week asking the drug company to halt planned U.S. price increases on its COVID-19 vaccine, saying price hikes could make the shot unaffordable for millions of Americans. Sanders said in his letter that raising prices would be particularly egregious after the U.S. government provided around $1.7 billion to fund development of the vaccine. The Vermont senator has railed against high drug prices and backed Medicare-for-all, and his chairmanship of the HELP committee could put drug companies in his crosshairs. Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine sales were around $18.4 billion in 2022.

☆ Moderna Considers Price of $110-$130 for Covid-19 Vaccine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Peter Loftus | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Moderna Inc. said it is considering pricing its Covid-19 vaccine in a range of $110 to $130 per dose in the U.S. when it shifts from government contracting to commercial distribution of the shots. The range is similar to the one Pfizer Inc. said in October it was considering for the Covid-19 vaccine it developed with BioNTech SE .

☆ Ocugen-Bharat Biotech COVID vaccine meets main goals in U.S. trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 9 (Reuters) - Ocugen Inc (OCGN.O) said on Monday the COVID-19 vaccine developed by its Indian partner Bharat Biotech International Ltd met the main goals of a trial in the United States. The vaccine, sold under brand name Covaxin, showed an immune response in individuals who had not received a COVID vaccine previously as well as those vaccinated with mRNA vaccines by Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) and Moderna Inc (MRNA.O), meeting its main goals, Ocugen said. Ocugen did not provide details about its submission to the U.S. FDA for the vaccine. The company is responsible for conducting trials and commercialization of the shot in the United States under a partnership with Bharat Biotech. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration had also paused trials of the shot after WHO's inspection of Bharat Biotech's facility.

☆ Moderna signs $35 million deal with cancer drug developer CytomX
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 5 (Reuters) - Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) on Thursday announced a $35 million licensing deal with cancer-focused drug developer CytomX Therapeutics (CTMX.O) to work on messenger RNA-based therapies for a wide range of diseases. The news comes a month after an experimental cancer vaccine from Moderna based on mRNA technology was shown to work against a type of skin cancer. The deal offers CytomX access to Moderna's mRNA technology, which has been used to develop COVID-19 vaccines, while Moderna would get access to CytomX's Probody platform, used in the development of cancer therapies targeting diseased tissues. Moderna said it will also pay tiered royalties to CytomX on global sales of any products which enter the market under the deal. The companies will work together to discover experimental therapies and Moderna will be responsible for human trials and commercial activities of products.

[1/2] A trader works on the trading floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., December 14, 2022. However, money market participants still place a 73.5% chance of a 25 basis points rate hike in February to 4.5%-4.75%, with a terminal rate of 4.84% in May 2023. ET, Dow e-minis were up 14 points, or 0.04%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 4.5 points, or 0.12%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 23 points, or 0.2%. Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) advanced 2.7% after Jefferies upgraded the biotechnology firm's stock to "buy" from "hold", citing cancer therapy opportunities. Reporting by Shubham Batra and Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Maju SamuelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Futures higher after two-week selloff, Tesla jumps on Musk poll
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A trader works on the trading floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., December 14, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew KellySummarySummary Companies Futures up: Dow 0.31%, S&P 0.40%, Nasdaq 0.49%Dec 19 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Monday after equities suffered two straight weeks of losses, while Tesla shares rose after CEO Elon Musk launched a poll asking if he should quit as Twitter's boss. However, money market participants still place a 73.5% chance of a 25 basis points rate hike in February to 4.5%-4.75%, with a terminal rate of 4.84% in May 2023. ET, Dow e-minis were up 102 points, or 0.31%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 15.5 points, or 0.4%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 55.5 points, or 0.49%. Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) advanced 4.2% after Jefferies upgraded the biotechnology firm's stock to "buy" from "hold", citing cancer therapy opportunities.

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