Pfizer CEO sold $5.6 million in shares the day he announced vaccine results: The Tribune India
New Delhi, November 11
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla sold $5.6 million worth of company stock on Monday — the same day he said his and BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine were more than 90% effective.
Axios announced the same day that Pfizer shares had jumped almost 8%.
According to the Axios report, selling stocks is perfectly legal thanks to a predetermined plan called the 10b5-1 rule, but the optics aren’t great.
A Pfizer spokesperson added no new information in a statement, saying the sale was part of a predetermined plan created in August, according to the report.
Business Insider reported that the Pfizer CEO cashed in 60% of his shares the same day the company released the results of its Covid-19 vaccine trial.
Bourla sold 132,508 shares at an average price of $41.94 per share according to filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. The stock was sold near year highs, according to the report.
Pfizer and BioNtech announced on Monday that the candidate vaccine was found to be more than 90% effective in preventing Covid-19 in participants without evidence of previous SARS-CoV-2 infection in the first efficacy analysis. intermediate.
The analysis assessed 94 confirmed cases of Covid-19 among trial participants. The study recruited 43,538 participants, 42% of whom were diverse, and no serious safety issues were observed; Additional safety and efficacy data continue to be collected.
Submission of an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is expected shortly after reaching the required safety milestone, which is currently expected to occur during the third week of November.
The companies said the clinical trial would continue through final analysis of 164 confirmed cases to collect additional data and characterize the performance of the candidate vaccine against other endpoints.
“Today is a great day for science and humanity. The first set of results from our Phase 3 Covid-19 vaccine trial provide the first evidence of our vaccine’s ability to prevent Covid-19,” said Albert Bourla, Chairman and CEO of Pfizer.
–IANS