The year is 2021, four years since the emergence of Covid-19 and the subsequent global pandemic. The fight against the virus has been long and difficult, with millions of lives lost and the world brought to a standstill. However, one significant milestone in this fight has been the development of effective vaccines, which have played a crucial role in saving countless lives.
Pfizer, BioNTech, and Moderna are among the companies that have successfully created vaccines against Covid-19. These vaccines generated staggering revenues, with total sales surpassing $80 billion and hundreds of millions of doses administered worldwide. Despite their financial success, investors have not been as impressed as Pfizer’s stock price fell by 32% over the past five years. In contrast, AstraZeneca saw a 64% increase in its share price despite not booking sales from its vaccine since last April. Even Merck, whose vaccine efforts failed twice, saw a 56% increase in its stock price.
It is surprising to see that the financial success of these vaccines has not translated into positive gains for the companies producing them. Investors seem to be focusing on other factors when evaluating the performance of these pharmaceutical companies in relation to their Covid-19 vaccine sales. It is clear that while vaccines have played a vital role in controlling the spread of Covid-19 and saving countless lives, there are still many other factors at play when it comes to investing in pharmaceutical companies during this challenging time.