CureVac: German Court Denies mRNA Patent Validity in BioNTech Litigation; Shares Undervalued

A German court invalidated one of CureVac’s patents that was part of the company’s ongoing fight with BioNTech over the mRNA technology used in its COVID-19 vaccines. The court’s decision sent CureVac’s shares down 30% as some investors were hopeful CureVac could receive a share of BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine revenue. In our valuation model, we had not anticipated that CureVac would receive any royalty revenue from BioNTech, so the court’s decision has no impact on our fair value estimate. We maintain CureVac’s fair value estimate of $15.40 per share, no-moat rating, and Extreme Morningstar Uncertainty Rating. We view the stock as undervalued for long-term investors with a very high degree of risk tolerance.