What happened
Shares of BioNTech (BNTX 1.63%) were rising 5% as of 11:46 a.m. EDT on Monday. The only news for the drugmaker was that New Zealand announced provisional approval of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by BioNTech and Pfizer (PFE 0.19%) for 12 year olds to 15 year olds.
So what
It's more likely that BioNTech's shares moved higher today because of the overall stock market gain than the New Zealand approval. The entire population of New Zealand totals only around 5 million. The number of 12 year olds to 15 year olds is obviously much lower. That's not a big enough market to serve as a huge catalyst for the biotech stock.
Image source: Getty Images.
BioNTech often has daily swings (both up and down) of 5% or more. Sometimes, the gains and declines come on days when the company doesn't report any news that would explain the moves. Typically, though, when the overall market does well, so does BioNTech. That's probably what we're seeing with the stock today.
Now what
The main thing to watch with BioNTech going forward is the success that it and Pfizer have in securing supply deals for their COVID-19 vaccine for 2022 and beyond. The emergence of new coronavirus variants could improve the company's fortunes as governments continue their efforts to turn the tide on the pandemic.
