Moderna, Novavax jump as Pfizer COVID-19 pill fails as preventative therapy
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COVID-19 vaccine makers led by Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) are on the rise in the morning hours Monday after Pfizer (PFE) said that its COVID-19 antiviral pill Paxlovid did not meet the main goal in a Phase 2/3 trial designed to evaluate it in the prevention of infection.

Currently, Paxlovid is indicated for at-home use by high-risk COVID-19 patients. Pfizer (PFE), which targets $22 billion from the drug this year, is trading lower for the second straight session.
Moderna (MRNA), the second leading COVID-19 vaccine maker in the U.S. after Pfizer (PFE), is currently leading the S&P 500 with a gain of nearly 8%.
BioNTech (BNTX), the German partner of Pfizer (PFE) in COVID-19 vaccine development, is trading higher after four straight sessions of losses.
Other notable gainers include Novavax (NVAX), which has added more than 10% to post the best intraday gain since late January.
Last Friday, the FDA said that its vaccine experts would meet in June to review the companyâs COVID-19 vaccine for use in adults.