Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) Receives $20.88 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nine analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $20.8750.

A number of analysts have weighed in on VIR shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vir Biotechnology from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $23.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Leerink Partners increased their price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VIR opened at $9.43 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.01 and a beta of 1.62. Vir Biotechnology has a twelve month low of $4.16 and a twelve month high of $11.66. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $8.75.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.85) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.84). The firm had revenue of ($0.03) million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.49 million. Vir Biotechnology had a negative return on equity of 53.31% and a negative net margin of 638.88%.During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.88) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology will post -1.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Janet Napolitano sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.45, for a total transaction of $30,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 21,216 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $200,491.20. This represents a 13.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 22,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.05, for a total value of $221,100.00. Following the sale, the director owned 1,078,391 shares in the company, valued at $10,837,829.55. The trade was a 2.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 25,579 shares of company stock valued at $254,922. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 31.0% during the third quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 911,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,207,000 after acquiring an additional 215,882 shares during the period. UBS Group AG grew its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 94.6% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 417,965 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,520,000 after acquiring an additional 203,203 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 10,878.9% in the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,480,828 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,268,000 after acquiring an additional 1,467,340 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. increased its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 1,135,763 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,176,000 after acquiring an additional 104,100 shares during the period. Finally, OP Asset Management Ltd bought a new stake in Vir Biotechnology in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,013,000. 65.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vir Biotechnology Company Profile

Vir Biotechnology, Inc is a clinical‐stage immunology company dedicated to developing therapies that prevent and treat serious infectious diseases. The company leverages a suite of proprietary technology platforms—ranging from antibody isolation and screening tools to cell‐based assays and bioinformatics—to identify and advance antiviral and antibacterial candidates. Its scientific approach centers on harnessing the human immune system through monoclonal antibodies and immunomodulatory agents.

The company’s pipeline includes product candidates targeting influenza A, COVID‐19, HIV, hepatitis B, and tuberculosis.