Moderna, Merck fall despite positive melanoma vaccine trial results

Moderna

20/08/2026 09:23

** Shares of drugmaker Moderna MRNA.O fall 19% to $115.32, while Merck MRK.N was down nearly 1% premarket
** Moderna and Merck MRK.N said on Wednesday that a personalized mRNA cancer vaccine reduced the risk of recurrence and spread of melanoma in a late-stage trial, a major success in a new field of cancer treatment
** BofA Global Research ups rating to "neutral" from "underperform", raises PO to $170 from $40
** "We see the setup as fundamentally improved versus 12 months ago, with room to run in both infectious disease and oncology, although the debates around label expansions and market uptake remain," says BofA
** The companies tested the vaccine together with Merck's immunotherapy drug Keytruda, a widely used melanoma (skin cancer) treatment
** Twenty-four analysts rate MRNA "hold" on average; median PT is $60 - data compiled by LSEG
** Up to last day's close, MRNA's stock had risen 491% YTD 

 (Reporting by Akriti Shah in Bengaluru)
 ((akriti.shah@thomsonreuters.com ; X, formerly Twitter: @AkritiShahh))