The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights Moderna, Merck and Vertex Pharmaceuticals

For Immediate ReleaseChicago, IL – May 4, 2026 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: Moderna MRNA, Merck MRK and Vertex Pharmaceuticals VRTX.Here are highlights from Friday’s Analyst Blog:Moderna Reports Q1 Loss, Stock Jumps on Strong International SalesModerna incurred an adjusted loss (excluding litigation settlement expenses) of $1.18 per share in the first quarter of 2026. In the year-ago period, the company reported a loss of $2.52. The Zacks Consensus Estimate was pegged at a loss of $3.02.The company reported a loss of $3.40 per share after accounting for non-recurring charges of $0.9 billion related to a litigation settlement with Genevant Sciences and Arbutus Biopharma over patent disputes tied to its COVID-19 vaccine technology. No such charges were recorded in the year-ago period.Total revenues in the quarter were $389 million, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $223.5 million. The metric surged 260% year over year, driven by higher sales in ex-U.S. markets.Nearly 80% of total revenues were generated from international markets, with the remainder coming from the domestic market.Shares of Moderna were up 7% in pre-market trading today, likely driven by the company’s strong international sales performance. Year to date, the stock has rallied 56% against the industry’s 3% decline.More on MRNA’s EarningsModerna generated sales from three marketed vaccines during the quarter — the COVID-19 vaccines Spikevax and mNexspike, and the RSV vaccine mResvia.Overall product sales were up more than 300% year over year to $352 million, driven by higher COVID-19 vaccine sales in ex-U.S. markets, supported by deliveries under long-term strategic partnerships with government entities. Though the company did not disclose an individual breakdown of product sales, the majority of the figure was generated from COVID-19 vaccines.Moderna generated $37 million from grants, collaborations, licensing and royalty revenues in the quarter, up 68% year over year. The company usually earns collaboration revenues from agreements with several big pharma/biotech companies, including Merck and Vertex Pharmaceuticals.Moderna’s Operating Costs DeclineSelling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses were $173 million, down 18% year over year. This decline was mainly due to lower employee-related expenses, as well as reductions in marketing costs and lower consulting and external services across multiple functions.Research & development (R&D) expenses were down 24% to $649 million, primarily reflecting lower clinical development and manufacturing costs incurred during the quarter.Moderna Reiterates 2026 OutlookThe company expects total revenues to grow up to 10% over 2025 levels. It expects the revenue split to be nearly equal between the domestic and international operations.Moderna is targeting R&D expenses of about $3 billion and $1 billion in SG&A expenses.Capital expenditure is expected to be in the range of $0.2-$0.3 billion.The company expects to end 2026 with cash and cash equivalents between $4.5 billion and $5 billion.MRNA’s Recent Pipeline UpdatesEarlier this month, Moderna secured approval in the EU for mCombriax (mRNA-1083), the first combination vaccine for active immunization against COVID-19 and influenza. This marks the fourth marketed product in the company’s portfolio. While a similar regulatory filing is under review in Australia and Canada, the company is awaiting further guidance from the FDA for a potential re-filing of this vaccine.The initial filing for mCombriax was voluntarily withdrawn last year after the agency requested additional efficacy data for the flu component. This issue was addressed with positive late-stage data announced in June 2025, where the company’s standalone flu shot, mRNA-1010, demonstrated superior efficacy compared with GSK’s approved influenza vaccine. mCombriax integrates mNexspike with mRNA-1010.Regulatory filings for mRNA-1010 are also under review in the United States and Europe. A final decision from the FDA is expected by Aug. 5, 2026. If approved, Moderna intends to commercially launch the vaccine for the 2026/2027 vaccination season.Moderna is developing more than 30 mRNA-based investigational candidates across different stages of clinical studies, targeting various indications, including cancer.An important candidate in Moderna’s pipeline is intismeran autogene, a personalized cancer therapy which is being developed in collaboration with Merck. Alongside the earnings results, the company announced that it recently initiated a late-stage study evaluating the therapy as both monotherapy and in combination with Keytruda Qlex for the treatment of high-risk Stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).Moderna and Merck are already evaluating intismeran in three pivotal phase III studies — one in the melanoma indication and the other two in the NSCLC space. Data from the melanoma study is expected later this year. The companies are developing the therapy in several mid-stage studies across multiple indications, including high-risk bladder cancers (both muscle-invasive and non-muscle-invasive), first-line metastatic melanoma, adjuvant renal cell carcinoma and first-line metastatic squamous NSCLC.Moderna, Inc. price | Moderna, Inc. QuoteMRNA’s Zacks RankModerna currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). 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It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.Zacks' Research Chief Names "Stock Most Likely to Double"Our team of experts has just released the 5 stocks with the greatest probability of gaining +100% or more in the coming months. 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