Pipeline of potential profits

The biotech company Moderna (Nasdaq: MRNA) generated billions of dollars in earnings from its coronavirus vaccine, but sales of the vaccine – its only product – are on the decline. Still, the company’s best days may be ahead of it.

Moderna has a full pipeline of programs, with many in late-stage development.

In fact, the company aims to launch 15 new products over the coming five years, predicting they could generate as much as $30 billion in revenue a few years later.

That’s ambitious, but even partial success could generate significant revenue.

And there’s reason to be confident about Moderna’s prospects, considering that it brought its coronavirus vaccine from drawing board to market in less than a year – and has reported encouraging data from other programs in development.

Next to market may be the company’s respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine candidate, awaiting a regulatory decision in 2024.

Though it faces two RSV vaccine rivals already on the market, Moderna’s candidate is the only one to come in a prefilled syringe – making administration easier.

Moderna also recently announced a treatment it’s developing jointly with Merck, tackling melanoma.

With all these programs underway, it probably won’t be a one-product company for very long.

Investors buying now can get in at an attractive price and may be well rewarded over many years. (The Motley Fool has recommended Moderna.)

Ask the Fool

Q. I know very little about stocks, but I want to invest in them. How should I proceed? – J.L., Dothan, Alabama

A. Before you deploy any dollars, take some time to read up on investing.

You want to be comfortable with how you invest and confident in your approach. Ideally, the more you learn, the fewer expensive mistakes you’ll make.

You could start with books such as “The Little Book of Common Sense Investing” by John Bogle (Wiley, $27) or others in the “Little Book” series.

Motley Fool books such as “The Motley Fool Investment Guide” by David and Tom Gardner (Simon & Schuster, $22) can also help.

And you can learn a lot exploring websites such as Fool.com and Morningstar.com.

Studying stocks and choosing which ones to buy and when to buy or sell them will require time and skill.

But note that you can do very well over long periods simply earning roughly the market’s overall return if you invest in one or more low-fee, broad-market index funds (such as one that tracks the S&P 500).

When you’re ready, you can read about reputable brokerages you might use at sites such as Bankrate.com and (our sister site) TheAscent.com.

Q. What’s the “triple-witching hour”? – L.M., Kalamazoo, Michigan

A. It comes four times a year – on the third Friday in March, June, September and December – when stock options, stock index options and stock index futures all expire on the same day.

The last trading hour of that day is known as the triple-witching hour, when the market might be extra volatile.

We average investors can safely ignore options and futures, which are generally focused on short-term movements instead of long-term growth.

My Dumbest Investment

I got into the market in the 1990s, during the dot-com bubble.

I had no idea of the ups and downs of this rational, efficient market, or that its then-soaring values weren’t normal. I just assumed that I was a natural at this stock market thing.

My initial stake of $5,000 multiplied to over $50,000 as everything I invested in went up, up and away.

“Arrogant” is the least offensive term I could apply to myself during this run-up. One of my holdings spiked from around $5 per share to $30 in a single day, and I borrowed money to buy more shares. Not long after, the bubble burst, and stocks started cratering.

I lost everything – and then some. It took years just to break even. I was humbled beyond anything I could have imagined.

My life lessons were expensive, but they are priceless and not easily forgotten. – John, online

The Fool responds: When you’re a new investor, it can be especially hard to distinguish between luck and skill.

Opinions are divided on how rational or efficient the stock market is, but it has always been at least a little volatile, and occasional sharp pops and drops are to be expected.

As you learned, investing with borrowed money is extra risky.

For most of us, it’s best to invest for the long run, to be patient and to not get caught up in speculative bubbles.