The company applied for emergency use authorization of its vaccine in children under six years old
Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA) is up 5.1% at $141.25 this morning, after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced an advisory panel of experts will meet in June to review the use of its Covid-19 vaccine in children under six years old. The company applied for emergency use authorization of the immunization last week, and said it will be ready for the upcoming review.
The security has struggled with a ceiling at the $180 level this year, while long-term resistance at the 80-day moving average has pressured shares lower since October, except for a brief surge above this trendline in late November. In the last nine months, Moderna stock has shed 62%.
It is also worth noting the security has exceeded option traders' volatility expectations in the past year. This is per MRNA's Schaeffer's Volatility Scorecard (SVS), which stands at an elevated 98 out of 100.
Speaking of options, puts are running at a quicker than usual clip this morning. So far 5,888 of these contracts have crossed the tape, which is double the intraday average, compared to 6,352 calls. The most popular is the May 110 put, followed by the weekly 5/6 call, with positions being bought to open at the former.