(Bloomberg) -- BioNTech SE dropped the most in more than three months as lagging Covid-19 vaccine orders held sales and profit short of analysts' expectations.
Revenue in the second quarter dropped by about 40%, BioNTech said on Monday. Diluted earnings per share were 6.45 euros, below the 7.44-euro average estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.
BioNTech and partner Pfizer Inc. are counting on an omicron-adapted vaccine to reinvigorate sales for the rest of the year. The first doses of a shot tailored for both the original coronavirus and the fast-spreading omicron BA.4/5 variant should be ready in October, in time for fall booster campaigns, BioNTech said. The companies will begin a clinical trial this month and manufacturing has already started.
The biotech's American depositary receipts fell as much as 9.4% in Germany, the most since April 19. They also declined in US trading before exchanges opened.
BioNTech still expects to hit a target of 13 billion euros ($13.2 billion) to 17 billion euros in vaccine revenues this year, with demand increasing in the fourth quarter once the new shot is available. Rival Moderna Inc. has said it will start delivering fall boosters in September.
The partners are also seeking regulatory approval in Europe for a version of their vaccine based on the original virus plus an earlier subvariant of omicron, BA.1. US authorities have asked drugmakers for a shot adapted to the later BA.4/5 subvariant.
BioNTech booked a 247.1 million-euro inventory write-off in the quarter related to unused production slots and materials and expired vaccines. Sales fell to 3.2 billion euros, almost 20% short of the average estimate.
(Updates with writedown in last paragraph)
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