German pharmaceutical company BioNTech has reported a net profit of 1.13 billion euros (£972 million) in the first quarter of this year on the back of strong revenues from its coronavirus vaccine.

The company’s estimated revenues surged to more than two billion euros for the period from January to March, compared with just 28 million euros in the same period last year.

BioNTech developed the first widely used vaccine against Covid-19 together with US partner Pfizer, which holds the market and distribution rights in much of the world.

The Mainz-based company said its revenues included more than 1.75 billion in gross profits from vaccine sales in Pfizer’s territories, and almost 200 million from sales to customers in its region.

BioNTech shares rose by more than 8% to 198.55 dollars in pre-market trading on Nasdaq on Monday.

The results are a significant turnaround for the company, which made a net loss of 53 million euros in the first quarter of 2020.

Early last year as the pandemic began, BioNTech pivoted from researching treatments for cancer to developing a vaccine against Covid-19.

Like its rival Moderna, the company’s vaccine uses mRNA technology to prime the body’s immune system to attack the virus.