Vaccine makers Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc. are on track to notch billions more in sales than previously expected, as new booster-shot strategies and concerns about the Delta variant push demand, and the companies raise prices in the U.S. and elsewhere.
The Biden administration on Wednesday urged adult Americans who received two doses of messenger RNA vaccines from Pfizer or Moderna to get a third dose eight months later.
Pfizer and partner BioNTech SE Covid-19 vaccine sales are expected to reach $74 billion through next year, excluding Germany and Belgium, 17% more than previous estimates, according to Ronny Gal, a Sanford Bernstein pharmaceuticals analyst.
Meanwhile, the analyst projects Moderna will ring up $35 billion during the span, 25% more sales than previously forecast.
The sums are further evidence the coronavirus pandemic is proving to be a significant moneymaking opportunity for vaccines, a business many drugmakers had abandoned because it was seen as requiring heavy investment while offering limited growth and carrying legal risks.
