Moderna (MRNA) Sues Pfizer and BioNTech Over COVID Jab
Moderna MRNA has filed lawsuits against rivals Pfizer PFE and BioNTech BNTX, alleging that their COVID-19 vaccine, Comirnaty infringes on patents related to its mRNA technology platform.
The complaints will be filed in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts and the Regional Court of Düsseldorf in Germany.
Moderna said it had filed the patents for this innovative technology between 2010 and 2016 and used the same in developing its COVID-19 vaccine, Spikevax. Moderna alleges that Pfizer/BioNTech copied the technology, essentially two key features, without permission to make Comirnaty. Moderna claims Pfizer/BioNTech’s vaccine used the same mRNA chemical modification as Spikevax and they copied Moderna's method to encode for the full-length spike protein in a lipid nanoparticle formulation for coronavirus.
Moderna said it would not enforce its patents for any COVID-19 vaccine used in the 92 low- and middle-income countries in the GAVI COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC 92).
Shares of Pfizer, Moderna and BioNTech fell on Friday in response to the news. While BioNTech’s stock toppled 4%, Pfizer stock lost 2.3%. Moderna shares declined 3.8%. Shares of Moderna have declined 46.2% so far this year compared with the industry’s 23.6% fall.
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Moderna did not sue Pfizer/BioNTech in 2020 when the COVID vaccines were launched due to the pandemic situation. Now with the vaccine supply no longer a barrier to access outside the AMC 92 countries, Moderna wants Pfizer/BioNTech to compensate for the use of its patented technologies. It does not intend to get Comirnaty removed from the market, nor does it demand an injunction to prevent future sales.
Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech have witnessed the most success when it comes to drug/biotech companies involved in making antibodies, antivirals or vaccines for COVIID-19. Their COVID-19 vaccines have generated billions in revenues for the companies.
Their respective mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines are now approved for emergency/temporary in several countries worldwide and are fully approved in the United States. The vaccines were also authorized for younger patients, while two booster doses were authorized in the United States in 2022.
Both companies have also filed applications seeking emergency approvals for a booster dose of their Omicron-based COVID-19 vaccines that target the BA.4/BA.5 Omicron variant of the virus.
The patent challenge by Moderna could cost Pfizer/BioNTech millions of dollars. In response to Moderna’s patent infringement filing, BioNTech issued a statement saying that its “work is original” and that it will defend against all allegations of patent infringement.
Zacks Rank & Key Pick
Moderna currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). A better-ranked stock in the overall healthcare sector is Morphic MORF, which sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
In the past 30 days, estimates for Morphic’s 2022 loss per share have narrowed from $3.38 to $1.75. Loss estimates for 2023 have narrowed from $3.91 to $3.77 during the same period. Shares of Morphic have lost 39.5% in the year-to-date period.
Earnings of Morphic beat estimates in three of the last four quarters and missed the mark just once, witnessing a surprise of 48.29%, on average.
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