Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corp’s (高端疫苗) share price yesterday plunged by the daily limit of 10 percent for the fifth consecutive day, closing at NT$230.5 amid questions over locally produced COVID-19 vaccines.
Medigen’s share price advanced after it announced on Feb.17 last year that it was working on a COVID-19 vaccine, peaking at NT$417 on May 17 after closing at NT$35.85 on Feb. 17 last year, Taipei Exchange (TPEX) data showed.
However, the company’s share price has plummeted by the daily limit since Monday, closing at NT$350 on Monday, NT$315 on Tuesday, NT$284 on Wednesday and NT$256 on Thursday, the data showed.
Yesterday’s closing price was down 44.8 percent from its peak last year, although it was still up 137 percent for the year to date, the data showed.
In yesterday’s trading, 2.09 million shares changed hands, with foreign institutional investors buying a net 4,867 shares and dealers selling a net 28,000 shares, the data showed.
The week-long plunge comes despite Medigen on Sunday last week announcing that it signed a contract with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to buy 5 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine — which is still undergoing clinical trials — with a subsequent purchase of up to 5 million doses.
In a telephone call with the Taipei Times, an analyst attributed the falling share price to market corrections and questions over locally developed COVID-19 vaccines.
“Medigen’s price was pushed up to an insanely high level last month, surpassing NT$400. That meant if you had bought 10 units, or 10,000 shares, you would have paid NT$4 million [US$144,295], which is an unreasonable price for a company that has not reported a profit or issued a dividend,” the analyst said on the condition of anonymity.
After the shares peaked in the middle of May, many investors rushed to sell their shares when information that weakened the company’s outlook spread, the analyst said.
Questions over whether COVID-19 vaccines manufactured in Taiwan should undergo phase 3 clinical trials to show their effectiveness and safety in large-scale tests before being used under a prospective emergency use authorization have weakened the confidence of some investors, the analyst said.
Although Medigen’s contract with the CDC will boost the company’s revenue, it is still uncertain whether its vaccines will be effective, as it has not released the results of its phase 2 clinical trials, the analyst said.
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