Excitement is building about the possibility that one or more coronavirus vaccines could soon hit the market in the U.S. Pfizer's (NYSE: PFE) announcement last week about its great efficacy for experimental COVID-19 vaccine BNT162b2 poured fuel on the fire.
Many investors are looking at how they could profit from these vaccines that are potentially on the way. In this Fool Live segment taped on Nov. 10, 2020, Healthcare and Cannabis Bureau Chief Corinne Cardina and longtime Motley Fool contributor Keith Speights follow up on an interview with medical expert and immunotherapy scientist Dr. Leo Nissola and discuss investing tips for buying coronavirus vaccine stocks.
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Corinne Cardina: Before we get to a couple of more Slido questions. Keith, do you have any tips for investors who are thinking about buying stocks in the coronavirus vaccine landscape?
I always think it's funny when I ask doctors, "Hey, I know you're not an investor, but do you have any tips?" They always say, "No, no I don't." Then they give great takeaways. Dr. Nissola said, "Look at their track records. What have they done in the past? That will tell you what they can do in the future."
Do you want to expand on that or maybe bring up something different for investors to think about?
Keith Speights: I think he is exactly right for most investors. I think most investors are going to tend to be a little conservative with how they invest their hard-earned money, and they don't want to put it at tremendous risk.
Looking at these companies that have those track records, Pfizer has a great track record. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) has one of the late-stage vaccines. They have a great track record. AstraZeneca (NASDAQ: AZN) has a great track record. Those types of companies, I think a lot of investors will feel comfortable investing in those because they realize that if the company's COVID-19 vaccines are successful, that's great. If the vaccines aren't successful, these companies have a lot of other products that will help them continue to be profitable and making money.
Now, I will say this though Corinne, there are some investors who are willing to take much bigger risks. For those investors, some of the other biotechs that are smaller could be potential plays for them.
Particularly, I think maybe Novavax (NVAX -4.82%). The company is really small. Its market cap is maybe around six billion or so. If their vaccine is successful, that stock could take off. Now it's very risky. Probably not a good fit for most investors. But I think there are some investors who will say, "You know, I'm OK taking on some risks with a small amount of my portfolio. I might take a look at investing in a biotech stock like Novavax."
