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Moderna on Thursday posted a surprise profit for the third quarter, smashing Wall Street estimates, as its cost-cutting efforts took hold and sales of its Covid vaccine came in higher than expected. 
Moderna said Thursday its newest Covid vaccine saw benefits after winning approval in the U.S. three weeks earlier than the last iteration of the shot did in 2023.
It is the first quarter that includes sales of Moderna’s vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus, its second-ever commercially available product. 

Empty bottles of Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine.
Fred Tanneau | AFP | Getty Images

Moderna on Thursday posted a surprise profit for the third quarter, smashing Wall Street estimates, as its cost-cutting efforts took hold and sales of its Covid vaccine came in higher than expected. 
The biotech company posted a net income of $13 million, or 3 cents per share, for the third quarter. That compares with a net loss of $3.63 billion, or $9.53 cents per share, reported for the year-ago period.

Shares of Moderna rose almost 9% in premarket trading Thursday.
Moderna is slashing expenses, with a recently announced goal of achieving $1.1 billion in savings by 2027, as it tries to recover from the rapid decline of its Covid business. It is the first quarter that includes sales of Moderna’s vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, its second-ever commercially available product. 
Before year end, the company plans to file for approval of its experimental “next-generation” Covid vaccine and combination shot targeting Covid and the flu. Moderna this year also expects to apply for expanded approval of its RSV vaccine, targeting high-risk adults ages 18 to 59. 
Moderna said Thursday its newest Covid vaccine saw benefits after winning approval in the U.S. three weeks earlier than the last iteration of the shot did in 2023, which allowed the biotech company to “meet demand more effectively.” The company was able to ship out doses to pharmacies and healthcare providers and reach the arms of more patients sooner. 
“I think the earlier launch and a steeper ramp drove a much higher sales number” for the Covid vaccine, Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said in an interview. During the first week of the vaccine’s launch, the company shipped twice as many products globally than it did in 2023, Bancel noted. 

He added that “this was a big cost reduction quarter, and we’re going to continue to do that.” 
Here’s what Moderna reported for the third quarter compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

Earnings per share: 3 cents vs. an expected loss of $1.90
Revenue: $1.86 billion vs. $1.25 billion expected

Moderna booked third-quarter sales of $1.86 billion, only slightly higher than the $1.83 billion in revenue it recorded during the same period a year ago. The vast majority of that total came from its Covid shot, including $1.2 billion in U.S. sales and roughly $600 million from international markets. 
The company’s third-quarter revenue also included $10 million in U.S. sales of its RSV shot, which won approval in May. Moderna said that sales of that shot were lower than expected since it was approved and recommended by regulators later in the contracting season, when many vaccine distributors had already completed their orders. 
Analysts had expected sales of $132 million for the RSV vaccine, according to estimates compiled by StreetAccount. Moderna’s RSV shot is so far approved in the U.S., European Union, Norway, Iceland and Qatar. 
The company reiterated its full-year 2024 product sales guidance of roughly $3 billion to $3.5 billion. Last quarter, Moderna slashed its outlook on lower expected sales in Europe, a “competitive environment” for respiratory vaccines in the U.S. and the potential for deferred international revenue into 2025. 
Shares of Moderna are down almost 50% this year as investors mull over its path forward after Covid. The company is betting on a pipeline built around its messenger RNA platform, which is the technology used in its Covid vaccine and RSV shot. 
The biotech company currently has 45 products in development, and expects to bring 10 of them to the market over the next three years. 
Moderna is developing a standalone flu shot, a personalized cancer vaccine with Merck and shots for latent viruses, among other products.
Cost of sales for the third quarter was $514 million, down 77% from the same period a year ago. That includes $214 million in write-downs of unused doses of the Covid vaccine and $27 million in charges related to the company’s efforts to scale back its manufacturing footprint, among other costs. 
Research and development expenses decreased by 2% to $1.1 billion compared with the same period in 2023. Moderna said that decline was primarily due to lower clinical development and manufacturing expenses, citing decreased spending on clinical trials, among other factors.
Meanwhile, selling, general and administrative expenses for the period fell by 36% to $281 million compared with the third quarter of 2023. SG&A expenses usually include the costs of promoting, selling and delivering a company’s products and services. More

Warner Bros. Discovery said streaming platform Max added 7.2 million global customers during the third quarter, bringing its total subscriber base to 110.5 million.
The media giant’s streaming service has been growing its subscriber base at a fast clip since launching in international markets earlier this year.
Warner Bros. Discovery reported third-quarter earnings before the bell on Thursday.

Jakub Porzycki | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Warner Bros. Discovery said Thursday its streaming platform Max added 7.2 million global subscribers in the third quarter.
It marked the biggest quarterly growth for the streaming platform since its inception. Max now has 110.5 million subscribers as of Sept. 30. Warner Bros. Discovery’s flagship streaming service has been growing its subscriber base at a fast clip this year since expanding internationally during the first half.

The streaming business has become a bright spot for Warner Bros. Discovery as its traditional TV networks have been pressured by cord cutting and a soft advertising market. Last quarter, Warner Bros. Discovery reported a $9.1 billion write down on its TV networks.
On Thursday, Warner Bros. Discovery reported third-quarter results that showed revenue decreased 4% to $9.62 billion compared to the same period last year. Total adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization were down 19% to $2.41 billion.
TV networks revenue rose 3% to $5.01 billion compared to last year, despite declines in both distribution and advertising revenue for the segment. Studios segment revenue dropped 17% to $2.68 billion, with theatrical revenue falling 40%, excluding the impact of foreign currency exchange, due to the lower box office performances of “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” and “Twisters” compared to that of “Barbie” last year.
However, the streaming business’s revenue increased 8% to $2.63 billion, driven by an increase in global subscribers, higher advertising revenue and global average revenue per user. Adjusted EBITDA for the segment was $289 million, an increase of $178 million compared to last year.

Subscriber growth

While Wall Street has turned its attention to streaming profits in favor of subscriber growth, media companies have been nonetheless been reporting customer additions so far this quarter.

In October, streaming giant Netflix reported 5.1 million subscribers additions during the quarter, propelled by its ad-supported plan and beating Wall Street expectations. In total, Netflix now has 282.7 million memberships.
However, beginning in 2025, Netflix will no longer update investors on its subscribers numbers as it shifts focus toward revenue and other financial metrics as performance indicators.
Comcast’s streaming platform Peacock added 3 million subscribers during its third quarter — spurred by the Summer Olympics in Paris — bringing its total to 36 million as of Sept. 30.
In August, Disney reported that Disney+ Core subscribers — which excludes Disney+ Hotstar in India and other countries in the region — increased by 1% to 118.3 million, despite the company’s earlier guidance that it wouldn’t add new customers during the fiscal third quarter.
Disney’s Hulu saw subscribers increase 2% to 51.1 million. Disney reports its next quarterly earnings on Nov. 14.
Paramount Global’s streaming division swung to an unexpected profit last quarter. Still, its Paramount+ streaming platform dropped 2.8 million subscribers to 68 million as it unwound a Korean partnership deal. Paramount reports quarterly earnings on Friday.
Disclosure: Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of CNBC. Comcast is a co-owner of Hulu. NBCUniversal owns NBC Sports and NBC Olympics. NBC Olympics is the U.S. broadcast rights holder to all Summer and Winter Games through 2032. More

This week 180,000 people descended on Abu Dhabi to attend ADIPEC, the global oil-and-gas industry’s biggest annual gathering. This year’s focus, perhaps unsurprisingly, was the nexus of artificial intelligence (AI) and energy. On the eve of the jamboree Sultan Al Jaber, chief executive of ADNOC, the Emirati national oil giant, convened a private meeting of big tech and big energy bosses. A survey of some 400 energy, tech and finance bigwigs released in conjunction with the event concluded that AI is set to transform the energy business by boosting efficiency and cutting greenhouse-gas emissions. More

Visitors to Bangalore, India’s tech hub, quickly learn why locals measure distances in minutes and not kilometres. The city’s clogged streets turn every outing into a test of patience. Other large cities in the country are just as bad. So it is no surprise that Indians are getting everything from biryanis and books to mangoes and mobile phones delivered straight to their doors—often in under ten minutes. “Quick commerce” is a booming business in India. Zomato, the largest company in the industry, is valued at $26bn; its share price has nearly doubled this year. Swiggy, its closest rival, is expected to go public on November 13th at a valuation of $11bn. Zepto, another competitor founded in 2021, is now worth $5bn. More

E.l.f. Beauty grew sales by 40% in its second fiscal quarter, leading it to raise its full year earnings and sales guidance.
“Not only are we the No. 1 brand amongst Gen Z by a pretty wide margin, but we’re also the most purchased brand amongst Gen Alpha and millennials,” CEO Tarang Amin told CNBC.
Amin said the company is well-positioned to weather increased tariffs that could be imposed under President-elect Donald Trump.

e.l.f Beauty power grip primer.
Courtesy: e.l.f Beauty

E.l.f. Beauty raised its full-year guidance on Wednesday after posting a 40% growth in sales. 
Shares of the company rose nearly 10% in after-hours trading.

The cosmetics retailer’s earnings came in well ahead of expectations on the top and bottom lines and it now expects sales to be between $1.32 billion and $1.34 billion during fiscal 2025, ahead of the $1.30 billion analysts had expected, according to LSEG. 
Here’s how E.l.f. did in its second fiscal quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

Earnings per share: 77 cents adjusted vs. 43 cents expected
Revenue: $301 million vs. $286 million expected

The company’s reported net income for the three-month period that ended Sept. 30 was $19 million, or 33 cents per share, compared with $33 million, or 58 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, E.l.f. saw earnings of $45 million, or 77 cents per share.  
Sales rose to $301 million, up about 40% from $216 million a year earlier. 
E.l.f. raised its full-year revenue guidance from a previous range of $1.28 billion to $1.3 billion and also raised its adjusted earnings guidance. The retailer is expecting adjusted earnings to be between $3.47 to $3.53 per share, up from a prior outlook of between $3.36 and $3.41 per share. Analysts had been looking for earnings guidance of $3.51, according to LSEG. 

The cosmetics company has been on a tear over the past couple of years thanks to its viral marketing and its prowess in winning over young shoppers with its value versions of prestige favorites. 
“We’re seeing multi-generational appeal on E.l.f. Not only are we the No. 1 brand amongst Gen Z by a pretty wide margin, but we’re also the most purchased brand amongst Gen Alpha and millennials,” CEO Tarang Amin said in an interview with CNBC. “We’re picking up consumers in pretty much every age and income cohort, which is great to see, and I think just talks to the strength of our strategy and the quality of our products.” 
Amin said that success has led both Target and Walgreens to plan to expand the shelf space they allot for the retailer starting in the spring. 
During the quarter, E.l.f.’s selling, general and administrative costs rose by $74 million to $186.1 million, or 62% of net sales, but it still managed to post a 71% gross margin, an increase of 0.4 percentage points from the year-ago quarter. 
Amin attributed the increase in margin to favorable foreign exchange rates, previously enacted price increases internationally and its overall value proposition. 
“Our ability to engineer prestige quality at these extraordinary prices has been the real driver, but most of our margin progress over the years has been through our innovation mix,” Amin said. “As we introduce a new one of our holy grails, it gives us the opportunity to inch up margin a little bit while still offering an incredible value.” 
The company has also been building out its international sales, which now make up about 21% of overall revenue. 
Amin said its exposure to markets outside of the U.S. will help soften the blow from any tariff hikes that could come under President-elect Donald Trump.

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President-elect Donald Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to send the U.S. electric vehicle industry into a period of uncertainty.
Republicans, led by the former president, have largely condemned EVs, claiming they are being forced upon consumers and that they will ruin the U.S. automotive industry.
Trump has vowed to roll back or eliminate many vehicle emissions standards under the Environmental Protection Agency and incentives to promote production and adoption of EVs.

Production is now set to begin at the former Detroit-Hamtramck assembly plant, less than two years after GM announced the massive $2.2 billion investment to fully renovate the facility to build a variety of all-electric trucks and SUVs.
Photo by Jeffrey Sauger for General Motors

DETROIT – President-elect Donald Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to send the U.S. electric vehicle industry into a period of uncertainty.
Republicans, led by the former president, have largely condemned EVs, claiming they are being forced upon consumers. Trump has vowed to roll back or eliminate many vehicle emissions standards under the Environmental Protection Agency as well as incentives to promote production and adoption of the vehicles such as the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.

Auto industry insiders and other officials have said it would be difficult for Trump to completely gut the IRA, but he could defund or limit EV subsidies through executive orders or other policy actions.
Several people said they would expect Trump to target federal consumer credits that currently offer up to $7,500 for the purchase of an EV rather than target industrial production credits for companies.
“The IRA will probably have some adjustments … I don’t think the IRA will go away,” David Rubenstein, co-founder and co-chairman of The Carlyle Group investment firm, told CNBC on Wednesday. “It has some really good things in it that I think Republicans and Democrats will like.”

Many of the investments into EV production under the IRA having been taking place in Republican states such as Ohio, South Carolina and Georgia.
Automotive executives are also quick to say they don’t base investment decisions on who holds the White House, but there are natural adjustments with new administrations.

“Anytime there’s an administration change, it’s an interesting time for the industry because we have to go through new policies and regulations and have to bring new people up to speed on who we are and what we do,” David Christ, group vice president and general manager of the Toyota Division in North America, said Wednesday during an Automotive Press Association event near Detroit. “Administrations sometimes change every four years, so we don’t really do a lot of modifying the strategy.”

Winners and losers?

Several Wall Street analysts have speculated legacy automakers — specifically the “Detroit” companies General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler parent Stellantis — would be the biggest winners of a second Trump term and Republican control of Congress.
“We see F and GM as the main beneficiaries from the Trump administration,” BofA Securities analyst John Murphy said in a Wednesday investor note. “The current environmental regime would pressure the core business of legacy [automakers, trucks,] to decarbonize by the end of the decade while shifting quickly to an EV portfolio.”
GM’s aspirations for an “all-electric future” and profitable EV business in the near term are highly reliant on federal tax credits.
Analysts had indicated EV startups such as Rivian Automotive and Lucid Group would benefit more with a Democratic win.
Toyota could also be a winner if EV regulations are reduced or eliminated, as the Japanese automaker has been slow to invest in all-electric models compared to hybrid vehicles.
Shares of GM and Ford closed Wednesday up 2.5% and 5.6%, respectively. Stock prices for Toyota and Stellantis, which is experiencing significant problems in the U.S., were essentially level. Lucid and Rivian were each down, 5.3% and 8.3%, respectively.

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Shares of automakers after President-elect Donald Trump’s victory.

An outlier is U.S. electric vehicle leader Tesla. CEO Elon Musk heavily campaigned in swing states for Trump, who has discussed making the billionaire a government efficiency czar.
Shares of Tesla soared Wednesday by 15% and earlier notched a new 52-week high.
“We see RIVN and LCID challenged, which is largely reflected in the stocks,” Murphy said. “We don’t expect meaningful issues for TSLA since it has already reached profitability and will introduce more entry level products that could be attractive for the larger public.”
Several automakers did not immediately return request for comment after NBC News and several other media outlets called the election for Trump.
Others such as the Detroit automakers and Hyundai Motor congratulated Trump and the newly elected officials across all levels of government.
“We look forward to working with the new Administration and Congress on policies that strengthen the U.S. automotive industry, which supports 9.7 million American jobs and drives more than $1 trillion into the economy each year,” Ford said.
“We congratulate and look forward to working with the President-elect, Congress, and all elected officials to ensure that the U.S. continues to lead the world in technology and innovation, to the benefit of American workers and consumers alike,” GM said.

California EV mandates

Trump is also expected to renew a battle with California and other states who set their own vehicle emissions standards, including requirements for sales of all-electric vehicles.
Current requirements under the “Advanced Clean Cars II” regulations of 2022 call for 35% of 2026 model year vehicles, which will begin to be introduced next year, to be zero-emission vehicles. Battery-electric, fuel cell and, to an extent, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles qualify as zero emission.
Before the election, automotive officials said regardless of who won the White House, many automakers will push for the mandates to be postponed.
The California Air Resources Board reports 12 states and Washington, D.C., have adopted the rules; however, roughly half of them did so starting with the 2027 model year. They are part of CARB’s Advanced Clean Cars regulations that require 100% of new vehicle sales in the state of California to be zero-emission models by 2035.
EVs made up 10% or more of local market shares in just 11 states and the District of Columbia to begin this year, according to the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a trade association and lobby group that represents most major automakers operating in the U.S.
Auto executives and industry experts also expect Trump could roll back or freeze the Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or CAFE, standards for model years 2027-2031.

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Stock prices of foreign automakers fell sharply Wednesday amid concerns the U.S. will hike tariffs on imported vehicles under President-elect Donald Trump.
Trump has regularly said he will increase tariffs on new vehicles from China, Europe and Mexico, where many automakers have established manufacturing hubs.
Most major automakers have factories in the U.S., but they still heavily rely on imports from other countries, including Mexico, to meet U.S. consumer demand.

Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign town hall meeting, moderated by Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, in Flint, Michigan, U.S., September 17, 2024. 
Brian Snyder | Reuters

DETROIT — Stock prices of foreign automakers, including Chinese and German manufacturers, fell sharply on Wednesday amid concerns the U.S. will hike tariffs on imported vehicles under President-elect Donald Trump.
European-traded shares of BMW and Mercedes-Benz were off around 6.5%, while Porsche was down by 4.9% and Volkswagen declined 4.3%. Shares of U.S.-traded Chinese automakers such as Li Auto and Nio also were down 3.3% and 5.3%, respectively. Over-the-counter shares of BYD, which aren’t publicly listed in the U.S. but can be bought through a broker, declined 4.5%.

Trump has repeatedly said he will increase tariffs on many products, including new cars and trucks from China, Europe and Mexico, where many automakers, including Europeans, have established manufacturing hubs.
U.S.-traded shares of Japanese automakers Toyota Motor and Honda Motor closed Wednesday up less than 0.5% and down 8%, respectively. Both also reported declines in quarterly earnings earlier in the day.
Trump made several proclamations regarding tariffs during his campaign, including calling for a more than 200% duty or tax to be levied on imported vehicles from Mexico. He also has threatened, as he did during his first term in office, to increase imports on European vehicles.

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German automaker stocks

Honda Executive Vice President Shinji Aoyama warned of increased costs to the company’s operations if there are increases in tariffs. He said Honda produces roughly 200,000 vehicles annually in Mexico and ships about 160,000 of those to the U.S.
“That is a big impact,” he said when discussing the company’s most recent financial results. “It is not just Honda. … All of the companies are subjected to the same situation. And, in short, I wouldn’t think that the tariff will be imposed soon.”

Aoyama later added, “Maybe we would go for production elsewhere not subject to U.S. tariffs.”
Most major automakers have factories in the U.S. However, they still heavily rely on imports from other countries, including Mexico, to meet U.S. consumer demand.
General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler parent Stellantis also have plants in Mexico. So do Toyota, Honda, Hyundai-Kia, Mazda, Volkswagen and others.
Under the previously negotiated North American Free Trade deal, and the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, that replaced it, automakers increasingly have looked to Mexico as a less expensive place to produce vehicles than in the U.S. or Canada.

Trump and Democrats alike said they believe the trade deal, which Trump negotiated during his first term, needs to be changed to address potential plans for Chinese manufacturers such as BYD to establish auto factories in Mexico to export vehicles to the U.S.
“They think they’re going to make their cars [in Mexico] and they’re going to sell them across our line and we’re going to take them and we’re not going to charge them tax,” Trump said Tuesday evening. “We’re going to charge them — I’m telling you right now — I’m putting a 200% tariff on, which means they are unsellable in the United States.”
Wall Street analysts speculate such tariffs could be hyperbole, citing Trump’s plans for an up to 25% tariff on imported vehicles to the U.S. during his first term that didn’t come to fruition.
“To be clear, we do not expect aggressive new tariffs in a possible Trump Administration (i.e 100%+). But the challenge for investors will be around rhetoric, especially with the USMCA up for renegotiation in 2026. Trade uncertainty could weigh on Auto stocks broadly, as we saw from 2018-early 2020 (during the height of the US-China trade war & NAFTA negotiations),” Wolfe analyst Emmanuel Rosner said Wednesday in an investor note.
BofA’s John Murphy shared similar thoughts: “We anticipate a tougher approach to trade and tariffs although we believe policy changes will be milder than announcements in order to minimize business disruption.”
— CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report. More