Moderna stock soars as first set of COVID-19 vaccine data ready for analysis

MRNA of Moderna Inc.,
+ 8.40%
Shares rose in the extended session on Wednesday after the biotech company said the first batch of data from its advanced test of an experimental COVID-19 vaccine was ready for analysis. Moderna shares rose 1% after-hours, after rising 8.4% to close the regular session at $ 82.44. The company said the first batch of data, which is sent to a data safety oversight committee, involves 53 patients, some of whom received the vaccine, others a placebo. In late October, Moderna completed the recruitment of 30,000 study participants and said it was “actively preparing” for the vaccine launch. Moderna shares are up 324% over the year, compared to a 10.6% increase in the S&P 500 SPX index,
+ 0.76%.