During gold rushes of the past, the people who sold picks and shovels used by gold miners often made more money than the miners themselves. Are there stocks worthy of consideration with the current rush to develop and market coronavirus vaccines that could profit in a similar way? In this Motley Fool Live video recorded on Nov. 16, 2020, Healthcare and Cannabis Bureau Chief Corinne Cardina and Fool.com writer Keith Speights talk about two pick-and-shovel COVID vaccine stocks to watch.
Corinne Cardina: So let's talk a little bit more about the cold chain, because that is relevant for the mRNA vaccine candidates. I think the big hurdle here is that the pharmacies in your neighborhood don't have the necessary refrigeration units to keep something as cold as it needs to be.
There is a REIT stock that I have heard some Fools asking questions about in Slido in the past few segments we've done. It's called Americold Realty Trust (COLD 2.00%), and it's a REIT stock that does refrigeration real estate. Have you ever heard of this, Keith?
Keith Speights: I have. I'm not extremely familiar with Americold. I did notice though, Corinne, that the stock dropped a little bit this morning. So you might think, well, why would that be when Moderna's (MRNA 5.59%) mRNA vaccine requires ultra cold-storage?
I think the answer to the question is that Moderna now, they don't have as stringent cold storage requirements as the Pfizer vaccine does. I think the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, I think, has to be stored at negative 70 degrees Celsius, which is ultra cold, and can only be at what I would call normal vaccine-type refrigerator temperatures of between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius for around seven days. That vaccine has some real logistical challenges for it. They're not insurmountable, but there are certainly challenges.
Moderna had previously said that their vaccine could be shipped at around negative 20 degrees Celsius and then refrigerated for up to seven days. But now they're saying they got a formulation that can stay refrigerated for up to 30 days and actually even be kept at room temperature for up to 24 hours. That's great news for the logistical challenges involved with the vaccine, and it could be not-so-great news for some of these cold storage stocks.
Corinne Cardina: Definitely, and on that same note of what stocks are going to win no matter which companies truly, finally get that green light. We have a question on Slido that I think is good, BFOF, best friend of Fool, Mike Migs would like to know what companies are these two vaccines going to be produced by? The picks and shovels, for instance, who produces the vials? Which stocks will win regardless of which company actually makes the vaccine? Keith, do you have any initial thoughts here?
Keith Speights: You know, off the top of my head, unfortunately, I don't know who the exact companies that these particular Pfizer, BioNTech, Moderna have contracted with.
But one of the stocks that you could watch out for is Emergent BioSolutions (EBS 3.35%), ticker there is EBS. They have contracted with quite a few of the vaccine makers to manufacture their vaccines. I think they have contracts with Johnson & Johnson and maybe AstraZeneca as well. I think even Novavax and some of the other players. So that's a picks and shovels kind of play, and of course, they're also involved in their own development activities. So that's a stock that I will keep my eyes on.
Corinne Cardina: Definitely. Good answer.
