Moderna stock jumped more than 5% in premarket trading

Moderna stock jumped more than 5% in premarket trading because Moderna led with antibody response in COVID-19 booster trial in U.K..

According to a peer-reviewed study published in The Lancet on Thursday, Moderna COVID-19 vaccine has shown the strongest antibody effect in a trial that evaluated the different combinations of COVID-19 vaccines as boosters.

The Phase 2 "COV-Boost" study conducted across 18 different U.K. locations involved nearly 2,900 individuals aged over 30 years. Half in the study had received two doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, and the rest had received the Pfizer/BioNTec vaccine.

The trial was designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of seven booster vaccines developed by AstraZeneca, Pfizer/ BioNTech, Novavax, Johnson & Johnson, Moderna, Valneva and Curevac.

While all seven vaccines except Valneva’s (VALN) boosted immunity in those who had received initial doses of Pfizer/ BioNTech, all seven had upped the immunity level when given 10 – 12 weeks after the initial regimen of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

Notably, Moderna COVID-19 shot had generated the strongest booster effect leading to an over 32-fold rise in antibody level in the AstraZeneca group and over 11-fold increase in the Pfizer/ BioNTech group, The Guardian reported.

In addition,Britain said on Wednesday it had agreed deals to buy 114 million more Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccine shots, saying it had sped up signing the new contracts in light of the emergence of the new Omicron variant.

The deal involves an additional 60 million Moderna shots and 54 million Pfizer doses for next year and 2023, and will also include access to any modified vaccinations if they are needed to combat the Omicron strain or any other variant, the British health ministry said.