Two weeks after its COVID vaccine flop, CureVac’s stock is on the rise

Shares were up 9% as of 10:35 a.m. ET Wednesday, on news that CureVac has both appointed a new COO and that one of the company’s cofounders has resigned from the board to focus full-time on improving the manufacturing process for its RNA vaccines.

It’s a notable jump, but the company’s stock is still well below its 52-week high of $151.80. Shares tanked when CureVac announced tests for its COVID vaccine candidate had an efficacy of just 47%.

“Strong manufacturing capabilities represent an important part of our corporate strategy,” said Florian von der Mülbe, the cofounder and chief production officer who will focus on the RNA Printer, the company’s manufacturing technology. “I am looking forward to using all my strength and expertise to rapidly drive forward the RNA Printer as an accelerator of the RNA field.”

Malte Greune will take over the COO role, heading CureVac’s clinical and commercial manufacturing activities.

CureVac has received funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. And in April, it was promoted by Elon Musk as it worked with Tesla on its vaccine printer. Musk wrote it “sounds like they’re a few months away from regulatory approval,” adding “a tidal wave of vaccine is coming this summer.” He later deleted the tweet.