Another Dose of Normalcy

By Alex Eule |  Monday, November 23 Monday Miracles. For the third straight Monday, trading began with excellent news on the vaccine front. This time, the positive results came from AstraZeneca, which has been working on a Covid-19 vaccine with researchers at the University of Oxford. The drug maker said its vaccine was 90% effective when used in two parts. The efficacy fell to 62% for one one dose.  While AstraZeneca's results fall somewhat short of the 95% efficacy rates from Pfizer's and Moderna's vaccines, public health officials have been hoping for anything north of 60%. The latest results are one more indication that Covid-19 vaccines are outperforming expectations.   AstraZeneca's version could be the easiest of the three to distribute: "The vaccine can be stored, transported and handled at normal refrigerated conditions ... for at least six months and administered within existing health-care settings," the company said in a press release. It also said it was on track to make 3 billion doses in 2021.  Barron's Bill Alpert notes that the company isn't seeking a profit on its vaccine: The Pfizer and Moderna doses will go first to rich countries. Of the three programs, only the AstraZeneca/Oxford team has agreed to a discount pricing deal for low-income countries, called the Covax Facility, which was arranged by the World Health Organization, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness, and the international vaccination organization Gavi, with the backing of vaccine philanthropist Bill Gates. So what's the reward for saving the world? While vaccine results from Pfizer and Moderna caused their stocks to pop, AstraZeneca fell on its news. The stock ended the day down 1.1%. Tough crowd.

 

DJIA: +1.12% to 29,591.27 S&P 500: +0.56% to 3,577.59 Nasdaq: +0.22% to 11,880.63 The Hot Stock: Occidental Petroleum +16.8% The Biggest Loser: Newmont -4.8% Best Sector: Energy +7.1% Worst Sector: Health Care  -0.3%