Investing.com - Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) shares slumped by more than 17% in premarket US trading on Monday after the drugmaker slashed its revenue guidance for 2025.
The group said it now sees annual sales coming in at $1.5 billion to $2.5 billion, down from its prior estimate of $2.5 billion to $3.5 billion. Wall Street had projected an outlook of $2.92 billion, according to Bloomberg consensus forecasts.
Most of the revenue would be logged in the second half of the year, primarily due to sales of its Spikevax and mRESVIA vaccines, Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Moderna said.
Spikevax, the firm's COVID-19 vaccine, brought in sales of $1.8 billion in its fiscal third quarter thanks in part to strong demand in the US. However, mRESVIA, Moderna's respiratory syncytial virus shot notched sales of $10 million, well below analysts' estimates of $135 million, according LSEG data cited by Reuters.
In a statement, Moderna noted that it was "accelerating and expanding" its previous cost efficiency and prioritization programs, adding that it anticipates cash cost reductions of $1 billion in 2025, as well as an extra $500 million in potential savings in 2026.
Product sales in 2024 were in the range of about $3 billion to $3.1 billion, with $1.7 billion deriving from the US and $1.3 billion to $1.4 billion in the rest of the world, Moderna said.
"This includes more than $3 billion in Spikevax sales and minimal sales from mRESVIA," Moderna noted.
Full-year cash operating expenses were also brought down by 25% versus 2023, Chief Executive Officer Stephane Bancel said.
"We remain focused on our three strategic priorities: driving sales growth, delivering up to 10 product approvals over the next three years, and reducing costs across our business," Bancel said.
In November, Moderna said it expects to report 2024 sales of $3 billion to $3.5 billion despite the business making less from its COVID vaccine than in the prior year. Overall fourth-quarter sales were anticipated by Moderna to be between $200 million and $500 million, assuming flat or lower COVID vaccination rates versus 2023, Chief Financial Officer James Mock told investors at the time.