Moderna (MRNA -0.46%) has had quite a year.
Developing a vaccine that could help to bring about the end of a pandemic apparently has a way of boosting a company's stock price. So how much good fortune has Moderna produced for its shareholders in 2020? Let's review.
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Moderna delivered a much-needed ray of hope to the world in November, when a phase 3 clinical trial showed its coronavirus vaccine candidate, mRNA-1273, to be 94.1% effective against COVID-19 -- and as much as 100% effective at preventing severe cases of the disease.
In addition, Moderna's vaccine was found to be generally safe and well-tolerated, with no serious safety concerns identified among the study's more than 30,000 participants.
The world cheered. And investors reacted by bidding up Moderna's shares, which were already up sharply year to date at that point based on the prior progress of its coronavirus vaccine development efforts.
All told, as of 11:45 a.m. EST on Dec. 31, Moderna's stock price is up 446% in 2020. So, for every $1,000 you invested in Moderna back in January, you'd have nearly $5,500 today.
Yet even more gains may be in store for Moderna investors in 2021. The biotech company plans to use the profits it earns from sales of mRNA-1273 to fund the development of new vaccines for other diseases. Should one or more of them prove safe and effective, Moderna -- and its shareholders -- could have more great years to come.
