Pfizer claims its COVID-19 vaccine could be 90% effective

[Image from Sam Moqadam on Unsplash]

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) has announced its vaccine candidate promises to be 90% effective in protecting against COVID-19 infections.

The announcement included the interim analysis results of its Phase 3 trial. Pfizer had earlier suggested that it would announce those results in late October.

The promising data clears the way for Pfizer to apply for emergency-use authorization from FDA for the vaccine, which it developed in collaboration with the German firm BioNTech.

Pfizer based its conclusions on the first 94 confirmed cases of COVID-19 infections out of a pool of approximately 44,000 patients. The company has not yet disclosed the infections occurring in the vaccine versus placebo arms of the trial. The company plans to conclude the efficacy phase of the trial when 162 patients are infected.

PFE stock surged today, increasing by nearly 10% to $39.87 in late-morning trading.

This news appears have added to an election rally in the overall markets. The DJIA and S&P 500 are up today.

Pfizer plans on producing as many as 1.3 billion doses of the vaccine in 2021. “Even with competition from other vaccine developers, we anticipate the majority of this production will be sold,” concluded a recent briefing note from Moody’s.

The news also bodes well for the company’s credit rating. Moody’s had considered downgrading Pfizer’s long-term credit rating from A1 after the company agreed to spin off its Upjohn subsidiary. Pfizer anticipates that its Upjohn separation will conclude next week. The credit rating business was investigating whether the transaction would reduce Pfizer’s scale, product diversity and free cash flow.

Confirmed cases of the virus in the U.S. have exceeded 10 million, according to a report in today’s Washington Post.