Key Points
Moderna, Inc. (MRNA) closed sharply lower, retreating from a previous close of $25.98 to $24.44. The move represents a decline of 5.93% on the day, with the stock price declining $1.54. Trading skewed negative from the open and never fully recovered, finishing near session lows as sellers maintained control into the close.
Below-average volume accompanied the drop, suggesting the decline was driven more by sentiment shifts than by outsized institutional flows. Technically, shares are now sitting roughly 50% below the 52-week high of $48.92, underscoring a prolonged downswing. Near-term, the $24 area is attracting attention as a potential support zone, while prior pivots in the $26–$27 region may act as initial resistance if a rebound develops.
In recent sessions, MRNA has struggled to build sustained traction, with rallies fading and lower highs reinforcing a cautious technical profile. Health Care stocks focused on vaccines and advanced therapeutics have been particularly sensitive to regulatory headlines, and investor risk appetite has been uneven. Against this backdrop, traders appear to be prioritizing balance-sheet strength and visible cash flows, leaving higher-risk R&D stories on a shorter leash until catalysts become clearer.
Why Moderna, Inc. Price is Moving
At $24.44, Moderna, Inc. carries a market capitalization of $10.15 billion and a trailing EPS of -$8.07. The share price sits around 50% below its 52-week high of $48.92, highlighting a significant reset in expectations. The valuation backdrop reflects negative earnings power, and the stock’s risk-reward profile remains challenging given ongoing financial losses and a volatile operating environment.
The day’s decline followed a regulatory development: an internal FDA memo signaling stricter safety testing standards for vaccine approvals. The more rigorous framework raises concerns about timelines and feasibility for Moderna’s upcoming vaccine launches, including its flu vaccine, and contributed to a broader vaccine-sector sell-off. Shares traded down roughly 6% intraday, slipping toward about $24.38 from the prior close. On fundamentals, quarterly revenue dynamics have been volatile: the latest quarter (9/30/2025) reached $973 million versus $114 million in the prior quarter, a sequential surge of about 753.5%. At the same time, reported figures have indicated roughly $1.02 billion in Q3 2025 revenue accompanied by a $200 million loss, reinforcing that top-line swings have not translated into sustained profitability.
Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with an average price target near $37.21 and mixed ratings. Year-to-date performance has weakened by over 41%, underscoring lingering skepticism about post-pandemic revenue durability. With negative EPS and a valuation context marked by a negative P/E, investors appear focused on execution risk in the pipeline, regulatory clarity, and the timing of approvals. In the near term, sector-wide regulatory tightening is a key overhang, while progress on late-stage programs will be central to rebuilding confidence.
What is the Moderna, Inc. Rating - Should I Sell or Buy?
Weiss Ratings assigns MRNA an E rating. Current recommendation is Strong Sell.
The rating is built on five indices: the Weak Growth Index aligns with a steep revenue contraction, including a -45.44% revenue growth reading; the Very Weak Efficiency Index reflects poor operating quality consistent with a -139.60% profit margin; the Excellent Solvency Index points to balance-sheet capacity, but cannot offset core execution risks; the Very Weak Total Return Index captures persistent underperformance versus peers and benchmarks; and the Weak Volatility Index indicates an unfavorable risk-reward tradeoff. A P/E ratio of -3.22 further underscores the lack of positive earnings support.
Compared with sector peers ALNY (D-), INSM (D-), and ONC (D-), MRNA’s E rating is weaker on a risk-adjusted basis. While these peers also face development and commercialization hurdles typical of the Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology and Life Sciences industry, Moderna’s mix of inefficient profitability and poor total return weighs more heavily in our framework.
In sum, the E rating reflects a combination of inadequate efficiency, negative earnings power, and weak total return that dominates any isolated strengths. Even with an Excellent Solvency Index, the overall profile remains unfavorable in our risk-adjusted assessment. Until the company sustains measurable improvements in growth quality and profitability—and demonstrates more consistent market performance—the index mix supports a Strong Sell stance within our methodology.
About Moderna, Inc.
Moderna, Inc. is a biotechnology company specializing in messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines. Operating within the Health Care sector and the Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology and Life Sciences industry, the company develops medicines designed to leverage mRNA to instruct cells to produce proteins that can prevent or treat disease. Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Moderna built its platform to rapidly design and scale mRNA constructs for multiple therapeutic areas.
The company’s portfolio includes vaccines and therapeutics targeting infectious diseases, immuno-oncology, and rare diseases. Its commercial experience includes an mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine, and its pipeline has emphasized additional respiratory vaccines such as influenza and respiratory syncytial virus, as well as cytomegalovirus. Moderna’s research competencies span mRNA sequence engineering, lipid nanoparticle delivery systems, and manufacturing processes aimed at consistent quality and scalability. Customers and end markets include public health agencies, health systems, and commercial distributors, as well as potential partnerships with biopharma peers for specific indications.
Moderna’s market position has been built around platform breadth, manufacturing integration, and speed of development, enabling it to move from concept to clinical testing relatively quickly. Competitive differentiators include its proprietary delivery technologies and accumulated know-how in dosing, stability, and immunogenicity. The company’s strategy centers on expanding its respiratory vaccine franchise, progressing targeted therapeutics, and leveraging platform efficiencies to broaden indications. As the regulatory environment evolves, execution on late-stage programs and sustained advances in product quality and reliability remain core to differentiation within the mRNA category.
Investor Outlook
For investors tracking MRNA, focus on whether the $24 area holds as support and how shares respond to regulatory developments affecting vaccine approvals. The Weiss Ratings E (Strong Sell) signals that weak efficiency, negative earnings, and poor total return outweigh solvency strengths for now. See full rankings of all E-rated Health Care stocks inside the Weiss Stock Screener.