What happened
Shares of Moderna (MRNA +2.16%) rose on Tuesday after the biotech provided investors with an update on its COVID-19 vaccine production efforts. As of 1 p.m. EST, Moderna's stock price was up more than 4%.
So what
Moderna has already delivered more than 30 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine to the U.S. government. Roughly 10.1 million of these doses were given to Americans, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Moderna expects to hit its COVID-19 vaccine production goals. Image source: Getty Images.
Moderna said it remains on track to deliver between 600 million and 1 billion doses worldwide in 2021, with roughly 100 million doses arriving in the U.S. by the end of the first quarter and a total of 200 million doses by the end of the second quarter.
Now what
Moderna investors -- and the world at large -- received some welcome news on Monday. The company said its vaccine did appear to provide protection against the highly contagious new coronavirus strains first identified in South Africa and the U.K. Moderna also plans to begin studies to determine whether a booster shot of its vaccine could offer additional protection.
Moderna's vaccine production efforts, in turn, could have a major impact on COVID-19 infection rates in the months ahead. And if it can achieve its supply targets, Moderna could even help to bring us closer to an eventual end to the health crisis.
