Trump grabbed up to $65,000 in Moderna stock. 2 weeks after an FDA approval, it rose 177%

Trump’s investment advisers reportedly purchased up to $65,000 in Moderna stock in March, according to financial research platform Quiver Quantitative. Two weeks ago, following previous FDA denials of a new Moderna flu vaccine — the first to utilize mRNA technology — the agency gave it the stamp of approval. Now, Quiver Quantitative says that Trump’s overall gains on Moderna stock topped 225% with the close of trading on Wednesday.\

Earning profits during the presidency

A Trump Organization spokesperson told Moneywise that the president’s investment holdings are “maintained exclusively in fully discretionary accounts managed by independent third-party financial institutions” and that neither Trump, his family or organization receive advance notice of trades. They added that they cannot “alter or override the managers’ strategies or models” and have “no input regarding investment decisions or portfolio operations.”

A May ethics filing showed a range of Trump financial transactions and trades totalling up to $750 million — including securities in companies like Goldman Sachs, Meta and Oracle. And a July CNN investigation reported that Trump promoted more than 20 companies on social media “days after buying stock in those firms – at times announcing government actions that could benefit the companies he just invested in.”

The outlet quoted a White House spokesperson who claimed that “there are no conflicts of interest” with Trump assets “managed by independent third-party financial institutions.”

Moderna’s cancer comeback could revive its fortunes — and mRNA technology’s future

The success of Moderna and Merck’s mRNA melanoma treatment also runs counter to the Trump administration’s elimination of almost $500 million in mRNA contracts last year.

Things got so bad for Moderna following a slump in demand for COVID vaccines that the company laid off 800 employees — or 10% of its workforce — and planned further restructuring and reduced research. But now, analysts are seeing new opportunities for mRNA within the cancer research realm.

One strategist told Reuters that the melanoma trial “gives investors stronger evidence that mRNA technology can have a meaningful ​future beyond infectious diseases,” while a Wall Street analyst told the New York Times that targeting cancer is “by far the most significant pipeline opportunity” for the company.