Shares of Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) rose Thursday after the biotech company hiked its full-year outlook for its COVID vaccine, its only marketable product, despite reporting a quarterly loss and sharp drop in revenue.
Moderna’s loss per share was $3.62, on revenue of $344 million.
The biotech company generated second-quarter sales of $344 million, largely due to a 94% drop in sales of its COVID shot. Total revenue plunged from the $4.75 billion it recorded in the same period a year ago, when COVID cases still trended higher in the U.S.
Moderna posted a net loss of $1.38 billion, or $3.62 per share, for the quarter. That compares with $2.20 billion in net income, or $5.24 per share, reported during the same quarter last year.
But Moderna hopes to end the sales slump on strong demand for its updated Covid vaccine targeting the omicron subvariant XBB.1.5. The company is slated to roll the shot out this fall in the U.S. commercial market.
Moderna expects $6 billion to $8 billion in sales from its Covid shot this year, driven by potential U.S. demand for 50 to 100 million doses in the fall. That’s up from its previous forecast of $5 billion.
The forecast includes around $4 billion in previously announced Covid vaccine purchase agreements and $2 billion to $4 billion in “signed and anticipated” contracts in the U.S. and other markets.
MRNA shares gained $1.34, or 1.2%, to $111.56.
