Pfizer Inc
Pfizer Inc
PFE
6.1%
226%
- Shares gap above buy point of 51.96 out of a cup base
- Stock benefits from new Covid fears, failure of Merck pill
- Stock initially broke out Nov. 19 but couldn't hold gains
Industry Group Ranking
Emerging Pattern
Cup
A cup-shaped pattern with no handle. Must be at least six weeks long or as long as a year. Buy point is 10 cents above the left-side high.
Pfizer (PFE) is the IBD Stock Of The Day as scientists grapple with a new variant that could undo Covid vaccines. In response, Pfizer stock broke definitively into a buy zone.
XThe new variant called B.1.1.529 — or omicron — was first detected in South Africa. It contains what one scientist called a "constellation" of mutations. Roughly 30 of those are centered on the spike protein, the key marker currently authorized or approved vaccines use to induce an immune response.
BioNTech (BNTX) says it needs two weeks to determine whether its Pfizer-partnered vaccine will be able to contend with the new variant.
On today's stock market, vaccine stocks popped. Pfizer stock jumped 6.1% to 54. BioNTech stock surged 14.2% to 348, and Moderna (MRNA) stock rocketed 20.6% to 329.63. Novavax (NVAX), which has an authorized shot in Indonesia and the Philippines, soared 9% to 217.97.
Pfizer Stock Breaks Out
BioNTech is testing the new variant in its laboratory, spokeswoman Charlotte Spitz said in an email to Investor's Business Daily. It needs two weeks to run those test.
"The variant differs significantly from the ones observed previously as it has additional mutations in the spike protein," she said. After testing, "BioNTech will be able to determine whether B.1.1.529 could be an escape variant, which would require adjusting our vaccine if it spreads internationally."
Pfizer representatives didn't immediately return a request for comment.
But Pfizer stock broke out. Shares gapped above a buy point at 51.96 out of a cup base, according to MarketSmith.com. The stock initially broke out on Nov. 19, but couldn't hold onto its gain.
Variant Research Is Underway
Pfizer and BioNTech began preparing for troublesome variants several months ago. The companies already have test data for alpha- and delta-specific vaccines that they could submit to regulatory authorities as models data, Spitz said.
She estimated Pfizer and BioNTech would need six weeks to adjust their vaccine for the new variant and could ship initial batches within 100 days.
Representatives of Moderna didn't immediately respond to requests for comment. Novavax spokeswoman Amy Speak says the company is already testing an omicron-specific vaccine. It will begin "testing and manufacturing within the next few weeks," she said in an email.
Merck Pill Less Effective
Investors in Pfizer stock also likely watched closely an update from Merck (MRK) for its Covid treatment, a pill called molnupiravir, in development with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics.
Merck said molnupiravir cut the risk of hospitalizations or death by 30% in a study of more than 1,400 unvaccinated, non-hospitalized patients with mild-to-moderate Covid. That's down from a 48% reduction in an interim analysis offered in October.
In comparison, Pfizer said its two-pill regimen reduced the likelihood of severe outcomes in at-risk Covid patients by 89%. Patients started Pfizer's pill within three days of symptoms beginning vs. five days for patients taking Merck's molnupiravir.
Bullishly, Pfizer stock has a strong Composite Rating of 97 out of a best-possible 99, IBD Digital shows. This puts shares in the leading 3% of all stocks in terms of fundamental and technical measures.
Follow Allison Gatlin on Twitter at @IBD_AGatlin.
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