Moderna spikes 11% to record highs after it is selected to be added to S&P 500

• Shares of Moderna spiked 11% to record highs on Friday after it was selected to be added to the S&P 500 index.
• The mRNA biotech platform will replace Alexion Pharmaceuticals in the index shake-up.
• Shares of Moderna eclipsed a $100 billion valuation for the first time on Thursday.
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Moderna jumped as much as 11% on Friday after it was selected to be included in the S&P 500 index.

The mRNA biotech platform hit record highs and eclipsed a $100 billion valuation for the first time ever on Thursday. Moderna has seen an ongoing surge ever since it announced successful COVID-19 vaccine data late last year.

Moderna will replace Alexion Therapeutics in the market-cap weighted index. Alexion is being acquired by AstraZeneca, pending final closing conditions.

Given Moderna's current market valuation of about $112 billion, the company will have a 0.30% weighting in the popular US Large Cap index. The S&P 500 index switch will occur just before trading on July 21.

Shares of Moderna are up 167% year-to-date. The move higher comes as Moderna works to develop a COVID-19 booster shot that would give recipients increased anti-body protection to the coronavirus disease and its variants.

Part of the rise in Moderna this year is also based on investors giving more value to the company's mRNA technology platform, in hopes that it could successfully prevent other viruses like the common cold and certain cancers.