Nov 4 (Reuters) - Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) on Thursday cut its 2021 sales forecast for its COVID-19 vaccine by as much as $5 billion, as it struggles to ramp up production of its two-dose inoculation, sending its shares down 11% in premarket trading.
The company said it was now expecting sales of between $15 billion and $18 billion from $20 billion estimated previously. Deliveries were pegged between 700 million and 800 million doses for the year, compared with its previous projections of 800 million to 1 billion doses in 2021.
The company cited longer lead times for international shipments, which may now shift some deliveries to 2022, and a temporary impact from the expansion of its bottling capacity for the vaccine.
Moderna had said in August it was "capacity constrained" for 2021 and that it had stopped taking orders this year.
Its production has lagged larger rival Pfizer Inc (PFE.N), which is expecting COVID-19 vaccine sales of $36 billion in 2021 and another $29 billion in 2022. read more
Earlier this year, Moderna flagged shortfalls in shots for Britain and Canada in the second quarter, citing an uneven production ramp-up. read more
Still, Moderna said its sales could be in the range of $17 billion to $22 billion next year as it signs deals with more countries for its vaccines and booster doses.
Reporting by Manas Mishra in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva