Pfizer COVID vaccine price hike seen giving revenue boost for years

Pfizer’s plan to as much as quadruple the current US prices for its COVID-19 vaccines going forward could spur revenue for years, analysts said.

The drugmaker, which developed and sells the vaccine with Germany’s BioNTech said last week that it is targetting a range of $110 to $130 a dose for the vaccine once the US moves to a commercial market next year.

Outside the US, Pfizer said it already has contracts with governments in many developed markets that extend through 2023 with prices that have already been set.

Mohit Bansal, analyst, Wells Fargo, said the new pricing range could add around $2.5 billion to $3 billion in annual revenue for the shots.

“This is much higher than our assumption of $50 per shot and even assuming $80 per shot net price in high-income countries, we see $2 per share upside to our estimates” from the new prices, he wrote in a research note.

The public announcement of the new price range could also be a green light for competitors Moderna and Novavax to strive for prices in the same range.

“We expect Moderna to adapt to this signal,” David Risinger, analyst, SVB Securities, said in a research note, adding that he sees Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna and Novavax “pricing in a similar range for the foreseeable future.”

Moderna had previously suggested commercial price expectations in a range of $64 to $100 a shot.

Edits by EP News Bureau