In pre-market trading on Thursday Moderna and Lucid Group stocks soared while Tesla and Alphabet fell. Moderna a biotech company announced that their COVID-19 vaccine was found to be 93% effective against the Delta variant in a recent study boosting the company's stock by 7.5%. Lucid Group a luxury electric vehicle manufacturer saw an increase of 9.54% after receiving a rating upgrade from JP Morgan.
On the other hand Tesla's stock fell by 0.85% after the company reported a decline in vehicle deliveries in July compared to the previous month. Alphabet the parent company of Google also suffered a 0.46% drop in their stock price due to antitrust concerns in Europe.
Moderna's success in their COVID-19 vaccine development has been a driving factor in their stock performance this year. The company has a market value of over $120 billion and their vaccine has been authorized for emergency use in multiple countries. With the rise of the Delta variant there is still a high demand for effective vaccines and Moderna's recent study results have solidified their position as a leader in the industry.
Lucid Group's rating upgrade from JP Morgan was also a significant factor in their stock surge. JP Morgan raised their rating from 'neutral' to 'overweight' citing the company's potential in the luxury electric vehicle market. Lucid Group is set to release their first model the Air later this year and their stock has been volatile as investors speculate on the company's success.
Tesla's decline in vehicle deliveries in July is concerning for investors as the company works to meet their annual target of delivering 750000 vehicles. The decline was attributed to supply chain challenges and a shortage of semiconductor chips. Tesla has faced production challenges in the past but their ability to meet their targets has been impressive overall.
Alphabet's drop in stock price is related to ongoing antitrust concerns in Europe. The European Union is investigating Google's advertising practices and has recently given the company a deadline to make changes to their algorithms. The investigation could result in significant fines for Alphabet if Google is found to be in violation of antitrust laws.
Overall the pre-market trading activity on Thursday was a mix of positive and negative news for these companies. Moderna and Lucid Group saw significant gains while Tesla and Alphabet suffered losses. It will be interesting to see how these stocks perform throughout the rest of the day and in the coming weeks.
