TacticScaleWhat Moderna Does & How It Makes Money (MRNA)
Updated October 2026 · reflects Moderna's latest reported financials
Biotech company developing messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines and medicines. Moderna earns most of its revenue by selling its respiratory vaccines, such as Spikevax, mNEXSPIKE and mRESVIA, to governments, health systems and distributors.
How Moderna makes money
Moderna earns most of its revenue by selling its respiratory vaccines, such as Spikevax, mNEXSPIKE and mRESVIA, to governments, health systems and distributors. It also earns money from partnerships and government-funded programs, including work with Merck, Vertex, BARDA and DARPA.
What Moderna does
Moderna, Inc. was founded in 2010, is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and develops medicines using messenger RNA (mRNA). Its commercial business centers on respiratory vaccines: Spikevax and mNEXSPIKE for COVID-19, and mRESVIA for RSV. The respiratory pipeline also includes seasonal flu, pandemic flu and combination vaccines. Beyond respiratory disease, Moderna is developing vaccines for latent viruses (CMV, Epstein-Barr virus, HIV), norovirus, Lyme disease and public-health threats such as Zika, Nipah and Mpox. Moderna is also moving beyond vaccines. In cancer, it is developing intismeran autogene with Merck, along with cancer antigen therapies, T-cell engagers and cell therapy enhancers. In rare diseases, it is working on propionic acidemia, methylmalonic acidemia and, with Vertex, cystic fibrosis. Its partners include government agencies (BARDA, DARPA), the Gates Foundation, immatics and OpenAI.
Products & services
- Spikevax (COVID-19 vaccine)
- mNEXSPIKE (COVID-19 vaccine)
- mRESVIA (RSV vaccine)
- Intismeran autogene (individualized cancer therapy, with Merck)
- Seasonal and pandemic influenza vaccines
- Cytomegalovirus (CMV) vaccine
What is Moderna worth?
On an owner-earnings DCF, Moderna's most-likely value is about $93 versus a recent price near $225 (59% above fair value). But TacticScale only calls a stock undervalued when the price sits below its conservative no-growth floor (~$37) with a margin of safety — so the honest verdict here is “Fairly priced — no edge.” Fair value earns its keep only at the extremes, not in the wide middle.
Price sits in the normal range — fair value isn't actionable here; it earns its keep only when price drops below the no-growth floor, or runs to roughly double the optimistic case.
Analysis, not advice. Fair value is a margin-of-safety estimate from a deterministic owner-earnings DCF, not a price target or recommendation. See the full breakdown →
Related companies
Novavax (NVAX) · Vir Biotechnology (VIR) · Merck (MRK) · Pfizer (PFE) · Roivant Sciences (ROIV)