The Goldman Sachs Group Cuts Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Price Target to $21.00

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) had its price target cut by The Goldman Sachs Group from $28.00 to $21.00 in a research report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

VIR has been the topic of a number of other reports. Leerink Partners lifted their price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded Vir Biotechnology from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $10.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.57.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

Shares of Vir Biotechnology stock opened at $5.50 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $7.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $8.11. Vir Biotechnology has a 12 month low of $4.95 and a 12 month high of $14.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $754.29 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.40 and a beta of 1.14.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vir Biotechnology news, CEO Backer Marianne De sold 79,712 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 769,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,578,554.75. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Verneuil Vanina De sold 7,373 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.14, for a total value of $67,389.22. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 79,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $726,264.40. This trade represents a 8.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 99,611 shares of company stock valued at $663,525. 15.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vir Biotechnology

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 524.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,111 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 5,972 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Vir Biotechnology during the fourth quarter worth $60,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Vir Biotechnology by 31.8% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,288 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 1,999 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 136.5% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 8,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 5,177 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.32% of the company’s stock.

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).