Investing.com -- Shares of Moderna Inc . (NASDAQ:BMV:MRNA) surged 11.7% on Tuesday and continued to rise by 2.3% on Wednesday amid growing concerns over the bird flu after the first human death related to the currently circulating H5N1 strain was reported.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicated that the risk to the general public remains low, with no person-to-person spread identified, despite an increase in H5 virus detections in wastewater.
The stock movement reflects heightened investor interest in vaccine developers as the CDC also reported rising cases of influenza, COVID, and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) based on wastewater testing. Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA), known for its COVID-19 vaccine, has a marketed product for RSV and has recently received $176 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Health to advance a vaccine for H5N1 bird flu.
Bernstein analyst Courtney Breen commented on the situation, stating, "Bird Flu is the major driver of the stock reaction today.
We point to the fact that the rise in other respiratory infections is unlikely to be material for Moderna 1) MResvia has very low market share in RSV, so increased attention/vaccination is unlikely to be meaningful; 2) that COVID vaccination tends to occur between September and December & high infection rates tend to reduce vaccination as it’s recommended for patients to wait 3mo+ following infection before subsequent vaccination; and 3) while MRNA has endemic influenza vaccines in development, they do not have any currently marketed products."
Moderna's stock movement suggests that investors are closely monitoring the company's potential to address emerging health threats.
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