Why Moderna Stock Just Popped

2026-02-18 13:35:32 ET

Vaccine specialist Moderna (NASDAQ: MRNA) stock soared 5.5% through 12:55 p.m. ET Wednesday after The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will accept (note: "accept," but not automatically "approve") Moderna's application to sell a new seasonal flu shot good for the 2026-2027 flu season.

Image source: Getty Images.

The FDA had previously rejected Moderna's application, refusing even to review it after concluding Moderna hadn't done sufficient safety testing. Now, Moderna is promising to do additional testing to confirm it's safe for elderly patients to take -- and it seems that's good enough for the FDA.

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