‘Reckless Disregard for the Truth’: Shareholders Sue Moderna for Misleading Investors on RSV Shot Efficacy
A group of shareholders is suing Moderna alleging the company knowingly inflated claims about the efficacy of its RSV vaccine for older adults. When the drugmaker later lowered expectations for the vaccine’s efficacy the stock price dropped precipitously.
A class-action lawsuit accuses Moderna of making “materially false and misleading statements” about the efficacy of its respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) shot, leading to significant damages for investors.
The lawsuit, filed Aug. 9 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, covers investors who owned or purchased Moderna stock between Jan. 18, 2023 — the day that Moderna announced that mRNA-1345, its candidate RSV vaccine, met primary efficacy endpoints in Phase 3 clinical trials — and June 25, 2024.
According to the lawsuit, Moderna misled investors by failing to disclose that “mRNA-1345 was less effective than Defendants had led investors to believe” and that “mRNA-1345’s clinical and/or commercial prospects were overstated.”
“As a result, the Company’s public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times,” the lawsuit states.