Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Shares Down 6% on Insider Selling

Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) traded down 6% during trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $5.30 and last traded at $5.18. 393,392 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 1,590,033 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.51.

Specifically, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 22,000 shares of Vir Biotechnology stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.99, for a total transaction of $109,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,254,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,259,411.09. This trade represents a 1.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on VIR shares. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $14.00 price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Bank of America upgraded shares of Vir Biotechnology from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $12.00 to $14.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Wednesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $12.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Friday, July 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $26.80.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Down 6.7%

The firm has a market capitalization of $714.05 million, a PE ratio of -1.29 and a beta of 1.28. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $5.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.78.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.80) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.72) by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $1.21 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.38 million. Vir Biotechnology had a negative return on equity of 50.22% and a negative net margin of 2,895.94%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 60.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($1.02) earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -3.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of VIR. First Trust Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the 4th quarter valued at about $93,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 58.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,915,465 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,059,000 after acquiring an additional 703,360 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the 4th quarter valued at about $192,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 71,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $524,000 after acquiring an additional 3,506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 930,454 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,830,000 after acquiring an additional 51,530 shares during the last quarter. 65.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vir Biotechnology Company Profile

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).