American Century Companies Inc. Grows Holdings in Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR)

American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) by 11.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 230,724 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 23,835 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.17% of Vir Biotechnology worth $1,694,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VIR. State Street Corp raised its position in Vir Biotechnology by 10.4% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,625,533 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,135,000 after acquiring an additional 530,645 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Vir Biotechnology by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,252,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,194,000 after purchasing an additional 118,379 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its position in Vir Biotechnology by 1.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 550,186 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,121,000 after buying an additional 7,287 shares in the last quarter. Alta Partners Management Company L.P. bought a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the fourth quarter worth about $3,593,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 447,313 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,283,000 after buying an additional 15,902 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.32% of the company’s stock.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

Shares of Vir Biotechnology stock opened at $5.72 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $784.46 million, a P/E ratio of -1.46 and a beta of 1.14. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. has a 12 month low of $4.95 and a 12 month high of $14.45.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.76) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.85) by $0.09. Vir Biotechnology had a negative net margin of 678.40% and a negative return on equity of 36.71%. The company had revenue of $12.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.14 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -3.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on VIR. Barclays boosted their price target on Vir Biotechnology from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Friday, February 28th. Leerink Partners increased their price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Vir Biotechnology from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Vir Biotechnology from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $10.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Backer Marianne De sold 79,712 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.95, for a total value of $474,286.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 769,505 shares in the company, valued at $4,578,554.75. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director George A. Scangos sold 10,964 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.81, for a total transaction of $107,556.84. Following the transaction, the director now owns 708,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,948,373.95. The trade was a 1.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 99,611 shares of company stock valued at $663,525 in the last three months. 15.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Vir Biotechnology

Vir Biotechnology, Inc, an immunology company, develops therapeutic products to treat and prevent serious infectious diseases. Its clinical development pipeline consists of product candidates targeting hepatitis delta virus (HDV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The company’s preclinical candidates include those targeting influenza A and B, coronavirus disease 2019, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human metapneumovirus (MPV), and human papillomavirus (HPV).