Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) Shares Purchased by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) by 58.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,915,465 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 703,360 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 1.39% of Vir Biotechnology worth $14,059,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. First Trust Advisors LP bought a new position in Vir Biotechnology during the 4th quarter worth $93,000. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in Vir Biotechnology in the 4th quarter worth about $173,000. Walleye Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 2,119.4% in the fourth quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 434,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,189,000 after purchasing an additional 414,884 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $177,000. Finally, Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the fourth quarter worth approximately $484,000. 65.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VIR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Vir Biotechnology from $28.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Vir Biotechnology from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $10.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Leerink Partners boosted their target price on Vir Biotechnology from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.57.

Insider Activity at Vir Biotechnology

In related news, 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 directly 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Backer Marianne De sold 79,712 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 769,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,578,554.75. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 99,611 shares of company stock worth $663,525 in the last quarter. 15.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

VIR stock opened at $5.39 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $743.47 million, a PE ratio of -1.37 and a beta of 1.36. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. has a 12 month low of $4.95 and a 12 month high of $14.45. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $6.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $7.95.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.88) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.83) by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $3.03 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.59 million. Vir Biotechnology had a negative net margin of 678.40% and a negative return on equity of 36.71%. Vir Biotechnology’s revenue was down 94.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.48) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -3.92 earnings per share for the current year.

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).