By Dhirendra Tripathi
Investing.com – Stocks of Covid vaccine-makers continued to be weighed down Wednesday by the promise shown by Merck's (NYSE:MRK) antiviral oral medicine against the dreaded infection.
Merck’s Friday announcement that trials of a drug it is developing against Covid showed that it could halve the risks of hospitalization and deaths was a blow for the shares of Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX), BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX), Pfizer (NYSE:PFE), Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ).
If approved, molnupiravir, the antiviral drug, could be the world’s first oral medicine for Covid, the company said in a note. Merck plans to seek emergency use authorization in the U.S. as soon as possible.
Novavax, Moderna and BioNTech traded 3.3% to 4.3% lower in today’s session. Johnson & Johnson fell 0.6%. Pfizer, which has jointly developed a vaccine with BioNTech, lost 0.8%.
Since the close of trading on Thursday, a day before the Merck announcement, Novavax has lost around 30% of its value, Moderna 18% and BioNTech 13%.
Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson, the two companies who are not very dependent on revenue from sales of the Covid shots, have fallen 2.7% and 2%, respectively. The Merck news came in just as Pfizer was rolling out its booster dose for those above 65 and other adults at-risk in the U.S.
Of the above, Novavax is the only company that is yet to launch its vaccine. There have been some adverse developments at Moderna which have added to the pressure on the stock.
According to reports, Swedish public health agency has paused use of Moderna’s Covid vaccine for people born 1991 and later because of indications of heightened risk of side effects. Reports also said Denmark has stopped offering Moderna shots to people under 18.