Moderna boosts Covid-19 vaccine sales forecast

Moderna has boosted its 2022 sales forecast for its Covid-19 vaccine to $21bn, the US biotech confirmed on Thursday.

Updating on investors at its annual vaccine day, the firm said it had now signed advanced purchase agreements worth $21bn, up from earlier guidance in February of $19bn.

Moderna’s vaccine is approved for use by adults aged 18 and older in the US. In Australia, Canada and the European Union, however, it is also approved for children aged 6 to 17. It is approved for use in children aged between 12 and 17 in the UK.

The update came just a day after the firm said it would ask regulators to authorise the vaccine in children younger than six years old following phase 2/3 trials.

It said the study in children aged between 6 months and 6 years had “successfully met its primary endpoint”, and that it would now seek regulatory approval from the US Food and Drug Administration, European Medicines Agency and other global regulators in the coming weeks.

There is currently no authorised vaccine for children under the age of 5 in the US.

Moderna is also looking to develop a series of booster jabs, including an Omicron-specific jab, as well as a refrigerator-stable version.

Stephen Hoge, Moderna president, said: We are focused on unmet vaccine needs for respiratory viruses, latent viruses and persistent global health threats. Importantly, we also continue to advance a range of Covid-19 vaccine options for adults, adolescents and paediatric populations.”

As at 1430 GMT, shares in Moderna were trading 2% lower.