Pfizer, Inc. PFE and Moderna, Inc. MRNA, which have already minted billions of dollars from their respective COVID-19 vaccines, remain poised to earn more.
What Happened: Pfizer and Moderna have both renegotiated their vaccine supply contract with the European Union, the FT reported Sunday.
The contract terms for the supply of up to 2.1 billion vaccine shots were revised after the release of the Phase 3 data, the report said. Late-stage study of the mRNA vaccine Pfizer is co-developing with BioNTech SE BNTX showed vaccine efficacy of 95%, while a similar class of vaccine developed by Moderna boasted vaccine efficacy of 94.1%.
In comparison, Johnson & Johnson's JNJ single-dose shot, which is authorized for use in the U.S., showed overall efficacy of 72%.
AstraZeneca plc's AZN COVID-19 vaccine made from inactivated adenovirus was found to be 76% effective at reducing the risk of symptomatic disease, 15 days or more after receiving two doses.
Additionally, authorized vaccines from J&J and AstraZeneca have been linked to stray incidences of severe blood clots.
Pfizer and Moderna have managed to expand the age range of their vaccines to include adolescents and they are also running trials on pediatric population. The companies are working on booster doses that may prove effective against variants and also on variant-specific vaccines.
The FT report states that Pfizer has increased the price of its vaccine from the originally contracted amount of 15.50 euros ($18.39) to 19.50 euros per dose. The Moderna shot price has been increased from $22.60 to $25.50.
Why It's Important: Pfizer and Moderna are able to dictate terms, as the world still grapples with the novel coronavirus, especially with the emergence of variants.
The EU is also under pressure to procure more supplies, as countries within the block have decried unfair vaccine distribution among member nations, the FT reported.
Pfizer's second-quarter results released last week showed that the pharma giant clocked in COVID-19 vaccine revenues of roughly $8 billion in the second quarter. The company also raised its vaccine revenue forecast for 2021 from $26 billion to $33.5 billion.
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