• MIT Professor’s Moderna Stake on Brink of Topping $1 Billion

    MIT Professor’s Moderna Stake on Brink of Topping $1 Billion(Bloomberg) — Another early investor of Moderna Inc. is on the cusp of owning a stake worth at least $1 billion after the biotech firm reported encouraging early trial results for an experimental Covid-19 vaccine.The value of board member Bob Langer’s 3.2% holding, including stock options, rose to $934.3 million Monday, as the shares surged 20% to a record $80 each. Langer, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, would be at least the third individual with Moderna holdings topping $1 billion, joining Chief Executive Officer Stephane Bancel and Harvard University professor Timothy Springer.Moderna, whose shares have more than quadrupled this year, released interim data from a small phase 1 trial showing positive early signs that the vaccine can create an immune system response to the virus in humans. The news helped fuel a broader surge in stocks, with the S&P 500 Index advancing 3.2%, the most since April 8.The company priced a stock offering to fund manufacturing of its coronavirus vaccine at $76 a share, 5% below the last close, people familiar with the deal said after Monday’s market trading.Langer, 71, has licensed or sub-licensed patents to more than 400 biotech, pharmaceutical, chemical and medical companies, according to his biography at MIT’s Langer Lab.Bancel and Springer own stakes worth $2.45 billion and $1.38 billion, respectively, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The biggest beneficiary of the stock surge is top shareholder Flagship Pioneering Inc., a firm started by Moderna co-founder Noubar Afeyan. Flagship distributed 10 million shares to investors last week, leaving it with an 11% stake worth $3.27 billion. Afeyan declined to elaborate when asked about how much of the stock he owns individually.“The broader market reaction is a measure of the need people have to perceive that there’s a scientific, technological solution to this kind of battle,” Afeyan said in a phone interview. “We’ve increased expectations, but that hasn’t changed what we do.”‘Warp Speed’Bancel and other Moderna executives, including outgoing Chief Financial Officer Lorence Kim and President Stephen Hoge, have been selling shares, some through prearranged trading plans. Bancel has sold about 200,000 shares since Feb. 21, data compiled by Bloomberg show.Moncef Slaoui, who owned 82,508 shares as of Feb. 21, stepped down from Moderna’s board last week and plans to divest his stake to help lead “Operation Warp Speed,” a Trump administration effort involving the private and public sectors to accelerate the development of a vaccine, the company said in an emailed statement.Slaoui intends to donate the incremental value accrued from his Moderna stake since the May 14 close to cancer research, Caitlin Oakley, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, wrote in an email.Moderna Insiders Get Fresh Chance to Cash Out After 200% SurgeOther major shareholders include AstraZeneca Plc and Theleme Partners, the hedge fund of Patrick Degorce, a former partner of the Children’s Investment Fund.(Updates to add stock pricing in fourth paragraph, HHS comment in second-to-last paragraph)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

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  • Why James Hardie, Oil Search, Webjet, & Westpac shares are jumping higher

    beat the share market

    The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has followed the lead of international markets and is storming higher on Tuesday. In late morning trade the benchmark index is up 2% to 5,569.9 points following positive COVID19 vaccine news.

    Four shares that are climbing more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are jumping higher:

    The James Hardie Industries plc (ASX: JHX) share price has stormed almost 11% higher to $23.75. Investors have been buying the building products company’s shares after the release of its full year results. James Hardie delivered a 4% increase in revenue to US$2.61 billion and a 20% lift in EBIT to US$486.8 million for the year ended March 31.

    The Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH) share price has jumped 9% to $3.27. The catalyst for this strong gain was a sharp rise in oil prices overnight. Traders appear optimistic that a vaccine could open up economies much quicker than expected and lead to an increase in demand for oil. The S&P/ASX 200 Energy index is up 4.5% at the time of writing.

    The Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) share price has surged 6% higher to $3.33. Once again, this strong gain appears to have been driven by the vaccine news. The travel sector would be a big winner if this vaccine solves the COVID19 crisis. It could mean that international travel returns much sooner than the market was expecting, which would only be good news for travel bookers like Webjet.

    The Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price is up 4.5% to $15.58. Australia’s big four banks have responded very positively to today’s development and are all notably higher. If the crisis ends earlier than expected, it could mean the banks have all overestimated the provisions that will be required. This could have positive consequences for future dividend payments.

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    Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of Westpac Banking. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Webjet Ltd. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

    The post Why James Hardie, Oil Search, Webjet, & Westpac shares are jumping higher appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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  • Why Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, Mesoblast, Northern Star, & TechnologyOne are tumbling lower

    Downward trend

    In late morning trade positive COVID19 vaccine news has given the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) a major lift. At the time of writing the benchmark index is up a sizeable 2% to 5,572.6 points.

    Four shares that have failed to follow the market higher today are listed below. Here’s why they are tumbling lower:

    The Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp Ltd (ASX: FPH) share price has fallen 2% to $27.82. Investors may believe that the prospect of a COVID19 vaccine being released in the near future will lead to a reduction in demand for this medical device company’s ventilators.

    The Mesoblast limited (ASX: MSB) share price has crashed 8% lower to $3.82. This decline also appears to have been driven by the vaccine news. Mesoblast has been busy trialling its own treatment for COVID19, with promising results. If a vaccine is successful then there would arguably be little need for a treatment.

    The Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) share price is down over 3% to $14.14. Investors have been selling Northern Star and other gold miners today after a sharp pullback in the price of the precious metal. The prospect of a vaccine has given risk on assets a major boost and led to a fall in demand for safe haven assets.

    The TechnologyOne Ltd (ASX: TNE) share price is down over 1.5% to $9.66. This enterprise software company’s shares were down as much as 5% following the release of its half year update. Investors appear underwhelmed by its 6% lift in sales and profits during the six months ending March 31. Especially given the significant premium of 52x trailing earnings that its shares trade at. TechnologyOne provided guidance for the full year and expects net profit before tax to increase 8% to 12% year on year.

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    Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

    The post Why Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, Mesoblast, Northern Star, & TechnologyOne are tumbling lower appeared first on Motley Fool Australia.

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  • The list of market resources pinned to the top of the sub has been updated!

  • Financial statement inaccuracy

  • PFE | Pfizer and German partner BioNTech SE said Tuesday they’ve begun delivering doses of their coronavirus vaccine to US candidates with trials in Germany already underway.

  • PFE | Pfizer and German Parker BioNTech SE have begun delivering doses of their coronavirus vaccine for human testing US, trials in Germany already underway.