Why This Investor Keeps Buying Moderna Shares As The Stock Falls

Short Hills Capital's Steve Weiss keeps adding to his Moderna Inc MRNA position as the stock continues to fall, he said Monday on CNBC's "Fast Money Halftime Report."

What Happened: Moderna has been selling off since Merck & Co Inc MRK announced positive results for its oral COVID-19 treatment.

Merck's oral antiviral molnupiravir reduced the risk of hospitalization or death by about 50% versus the placebo for patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 in Phase 3 interim analysis. The company said it plans to submit an application for Emergency Use Authorization to the U.S. FDA as soon as possible.

Related Link: Why Moderna Shares Continue To Fall Today

Weiss' Take: Merck's therapeutic treatment isn't a substitute for preventative treatments like Moderna's vaccine, Weiss said. 

"To me it's idiotic to say I'm not going to take the vaccine because I've got a 50% better chance of not being hospitalized or dying by taking this pill," he said. It doesn't make sense for the stock to sell off on the Merck news, Weiss added.

As the stock falls, the fundamentals continue to improve, he emphasized. 

Weiss noted Moderna has become his largest position ever and that he still believes it's the cheapest stock that he owns.

MRNA Price Action: Moderna has traded as high as $497.49 and as low as $65.48 over a 52-week period.

The stock was down 4.66% at $325.17 at time of publication.

Photo: Mufid Majnun from Pixabay.