AstraZeneca Sells 7.7% Stake in Moderna, Raises $1.2 Billion

Compiled by Fan Dongdong

According to a Sunday report by Reuters in France, AstraZeneca sold its 7.7% stake in Moderna for over $1 billion. It is currently unclear exactly when AstraZeneca sold these Moderna shares, but reports suggest the transaction likely took place in the fourth quarter of 2020.

The Times of London was the first media outlet to report that AstraZeneca had sold its shares in Moderna. According to The Times, AstraZeneca is the second-largest shareholder in Moderna. The report indicated that the total value of the shares sold by AstraZeneca amounted to approximately $1.2 billion.

The Times stated that AstraZeneca might use the funds to strengthen its R&D pipeline, including continuing to develop new assets and repaying debt incurred from acquisitions. Last December, AstraZeneca announced its intention to acquire Alexion, a rare disease drug company, for $39 billion, aiming to enhance its position in immunology through Alexion's innovative complement technology platform and rare disease R&D capabilities.

Despite selling a significant stake in Moderna, AstraZeneca and Moderna will continue to collaborate on the development of mRNA therapeutic candidates, targeting indications across multiple tumor types as well as cardiovascular, metabolic, and renal diseases. The two companies first entered into a partnership in 2013, when AstraZeneca invested $240 million in Moderna, with an option to pay up to an additional $180 million in milestone payments. In 2016, the two companies further expanded their collaboration, including an additional investment of $140 million by AstraZeneca. By 2016, AstraZeneca’s ownership stake had increased to 9%.

Reuters stated that neither AstraZeneca nor Moderna commented on the stock sale.

Notably, AstraZeneca is not the only company that has chosen to divest its stake in Moderna. Last December, Merck & Co. also opted to sell its shares in Moderna. Merck initially invested $50 million in Moderna in 2015 and made an additional investment of $125 million in 2018, which included a collaboration to develop personalized cancer vaccines using Moderna’s mRNA vaccine technology.

mRNA carries the information for protein synthesis in the human body. As a therapeutic agent, this molecule offers a novel approach to addressing many difficult-to-treat diseases, such as cancer, cardiac disorders, and renal diseases. Upon effective administration via injection, mRNA can signal patient cells to facilitate ribosome assembly and enable the synthesis of therapeutic proteins required for disease treatment.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic last year, Moderna’s stock price has surged by nearly fivefold. The mRNA vaccine developed by Moderna has currently received emergency use authorization in the United States for COVID-19. The successful development and market launch of the COVID-19 vaccine have helped Moderna, a U.S. vaccine manufacturer, achieve its first quarterly profit since its establishment in 2010. The company’s financial report released on Thursday showed that its fourth-quarter revenue reached nearly $200 million, and it projected that vaccine sales would generate $18.4 billion in revenue for the company in 2021.

In February, Moderna announced that it would increase investment, with the expectation of doubling its COVID-19 vaccine production capacity by 2022. Moderna also projected that investments in its own and partner facilities would raise its vaccine production capacity to 1.4 billion doses by 2022, with actual output subject to adjustments based on dosage and viral variants. Additionally, Moderna announced an increase in its 2021 production target from 600 million doses to 700 million doses.

Reference Sources:

1.AstraZeneca sells 7.7% stake in Moderna for over $1 billion

2.AstraZeneca sells stake in Moderna for $1.2bn

3.AstraZeneca Divests Moderna Holdings for More than $1 Billion