Pfizer's rollercoaster ride and what comes next

Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) emerged as a global hero during the COVID-19 pandemic, delivering critical medicines at unprecedented speed and saving millions of lives worldwide.

The company’s collaboration with German biotech BioNTech (Nasdaq: BNTX) on Comirnaty (tozinameran), one of the first mRNA-based vaccines authorized for emergency use, could be used as a case study in how to respond to a global viral outbreak.

In helping check the relentless march of SARS-CoV-2, the immediate value of the program is clear. Perhaps less obvious at the time was the long-term impact; the firm’s mRNA discoveries have spawned a wave of research that will influence the trajectory of vaccine technology for years to come.