COVID-vaccine maker BioNTech reports $1.37B profit in Q1

<p>BERLIN &mdash; German pharmaceutical company BioNTech reported a net profit of 1.13 billion euros ($1.37 billion) in the first quarter of this year on the back of strong revenues from its coronavirus vaccine.</p>
<p>The company’s estimated revenues surged to over 2 billion euros for the period from January to March, compared with just 28 million euros in the same period last year.</p>
<p>BioNTech developed the first widely used vaccine against COVID-19 together with U.S. partner Pfizer, which holds the market and distribution rights in much of the world.</p>
<p>The Mainz-based company said its revenues included over 1.75 billion in gross profits from vaccine sales in Pfizer’s territories, and almost 200 million from sales to customers in its region.</p>
<p>BioNTech shares rose by more than 8% to $198.55 in pre-market trading on Nasdaq Monday.</p>
<p>The results are a significant turnaround for the company, which made a net loss of 53 million euros in the first quarter of 2020.</p>
<p>Early last year as the pandemic began, BioNTech pivoted from researching treatments for cancer to developing a vaccine against COVID-19. Like its rival Moderna, the company’s vaccine uses mRNA technology to prime the body’s immune system to attack the virus.</p>