COVID-19 vaccine makers decline after delay for FDA decision on vaccines for kids
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Leading COVID-19 vaccine developers are trading lower in morning hours, underperforming the broader market on Monday.
The selloff follows the decision by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to postpone a key meeting scheduled for this week to discuss the authorization of the Pfizer (PFE
-3.4%)/BioNTech COVID-19 shot for children aged six months to five years.

Notable decliners include Moderna (MRNA
-12.3%), Pfizer (PFE
-3.4%), BioNTech (BNTX
-8.7%), Novavax (NVAX
-9.4%), Ocugen (OCGN
-1.4%) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ
-1.6%).
Earlier, the federal agency had planned to greenlight the vaccine for kids this month, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) expected the vaccine rollout to begin as early as next week.
However, last Friday, Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX) decided to delay their request, noting a requirement for more data from an ongoing study involving children aged six months to four years. âThe companies will wait for the three-dose data as Pfizer and BioNTech continue to believe it may provide a higher level of protection in this age group,â a statement from the duo read.
In December, Pfizer (PFE) and BioNTech (BNTX) announced a revision to the trial to add a third shot after the first two doses failed to produce a sufficient immune response in those aged two to four years.
Meanwhile, rival messenger-RNA-based vaccine maker, Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA), is also advancing its COVID-19 shot in a Phase 2/3 study involving children aged six months to 12 years. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based biotech has yet to receive the FDA nod for the vaccine in those aged 12 to 18 years, even after eight months from its request to the regulator.
Announcing results from a Phase 3 trial involving children aged 12 to 17 years, Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) said last week that the company plans to submit the adolescent data on its protein-based vaccine to global regulators in Q1 2022.