Brokerages Set Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) Price Target at $17.30

Shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $17.30.

VIR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $12.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Tuesday. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $15.00 price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Monday, September 15th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Friday, July 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of Vir Biotechnology from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $12.00 to $14.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 27th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vir Biotechnology

In other news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 22,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.84, for a total transaction of $128,480.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,232,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,197,163.44. This represents a 1.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Endurance (Cayman) Ltd Svf sold 12,844 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.10, for a total transaction of $78,348.40. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 15,340,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $93,577,013.40. The trade was a 0.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,409,547 shares of company stock worth $8,220,208. 16.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the 1st quarter worth about $78,000. Cinctive Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the 1st quarter worth about $547,000. Clarius Group LLC raised its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 979.7% during the 2nd quarter. Clarius Group LLC now owns 617,535 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,112,000 after purchasing an additional 560,342 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 43.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 742,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,813,000 after purchasing an additional 225,544 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 524.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,111 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 5,972 shares during the last quarter. 65.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

NASDAQ VIR opened at $5.78 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $5.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.28. Vir Biotechnology has a 1 year low of $4.16 and a 1 year high of $14.45. The company has a market cap of $802.96 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.45 and a beta of 1.27.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last released 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). Vir Biotechnology had a negative net margin of 2,895.94% and a negative return on equity of 50.22%. The firm had revenue of $1.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.38 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($1.02) earnings per share. Vir Biotechnology’s revenue was down 60.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Vir Biotechnology will post -3.92 earnings per share for the current year.

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).