Moderna’s stock rallies after announcement of positive data from trial of melanoma treatment combined with Merck’s Keytruda

Stock of Moderna Inc.
mRNA,
+0.72%

rose 7% early Thursday, after the biotechnology company and its partner Merck
MRK,
+2.65%

announced positive data from an interim trial of Moderna’s mRNA-4157 in combination with Merck’s blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda in patients with resected high-risk melanoma (stage III/IV). The companies said that after about three years, the combination reduced the risk of recurrence or death by 49% and the risk of distant metastases or death by 62%, compared to Keytruda alone. “This data adds another positive analysis to the multiple endpoints and subgroups previously evaluated in this study,” said Kyle Holen, senior vice president and head of therapeutics and oncology development at Moderna. The companies have initiated phase 3 trials of mRNA-4157 in combination with Keytruda. Moderna’s stock has fallen 56% so far in 2023, while the S&P 500
SPX,
+1.37%

gained 22.6%.