Pfizer (PFE +1.24%) and Moderna (MRNA 4.01%) have dominated the U.S. market since they became the first to launch their vaccines. That was back in December of 2020. Today, Pfizer has fully vaccinated more than 124 million Americans. And Moderna has vaccinated more than 75 million. Both companies also have delivered millions of doses around the world.
But two other companies actually have won a larger number of orders. Does this mean these players are a step ahead of Pfizer and Moderna? Let's take a closer look.
Image source: Getty Images.
Two companies with big orders
First, it's important to note that data in the following chart is as of March 2021. Since that time, companies have won additional orders. But the trend hasn't changed drastically. AstraZeneca (AZN +0.00%) and Novavax (NVAX +0.86%) are leading in orders. Their orders total 3 billion and 1.4 billion doses, respectively.
Image source: Statista.
Pfizer follows with orders for more than 1.2 billion doses. And Moderna arrives third with orders for 816 million doses.
Now let's get back to our question: Does this mean players like AstraZeneca and Novavax are beating Pfizer and Moderna? Not necessarily. It's important to take a look at each vaccine's revenue. AstraZeneca generated about $3.9 billion in vaccine sales last year. At the same time, Pfizer made more than $36 billion in vaccine sales. And Moderna brought in $18.5 billion. Novavax only started delivering its vaccine toward the end of last year.
Why the difference in revenue? AstraZeneca promised it wouldn't take a profit on vaccine sales during the pandemic. As a result, the 2.5 billion doses it made available last year were priced lower the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. Also, AstraZeneca and Novavax signed major supply agreements with organizations serving low-and-middle income countries. This means many of their doses are going to these countries rather than countries paying a higher price.
A billion doses
Moderna and Pfizer also are providing doses to lower-income countries. For example, Pfizer delivered 1 billion doses to low and middle-income countries last year and plans to do the same this year. And late last year, Moderna said it would prioritize doses to lower-income countries. But the following chart shows that most Moderna doses have gone to countries that pay more for vaccines.
Image source: Statista.
As of last September, 84.5% of Moderna vaccines delivered went to high-income countries. Some doses went to upper-middle- and lower-middle-income countries. But lower-income countries received 0% of Moderna's vaccine doses.
What does all of this mean for the companies and their revenue? Even if they deliver fewer doses than certain rivals do, Moderna and Pfizer probably will remain ahead when it comes to revenue. That's for two reasons: They are selling their vaccines for a profit. And they are delivering a great number to higher-income countries that can afford to pay higher prices.
