Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Sets New 12-Month High on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $10.00 to $14.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Vir Biotechnology traded as high as $14.45 and last traded at $12.48, with a volume of 39456292 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $7.89.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley raised Vir Biotechnology from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $10.00 to $20.00 in a report on Thursday. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vir Biotechnology presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $37.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vir Biotechnology

In other Vir Biotechnology news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 10,960 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total value of $137,219.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,312,391 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,431,135.32. The trade was a 0.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,786 shares of company stock worth $170,172. 15.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VIR. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 143.5% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,989 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 2,351 shares during the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the 3rd quarter worth about $56,000. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the second quarter worth approximately $95,000. Quest Partners LLC grew its holdings in Vir Biotechnology by 142.1% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 12,695 shares of the company’s stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 7,452 shares during the period. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Vir Biotechnology during the second quarter worth approximately $119,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.32% of the company’s stock.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 0.51. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $8.24 and its 200 day moving average is $8.36.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported ($1.56) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.05) by ($0.51). The business had revenue of $2.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.54 million. Vir Biotechnology had a negative return on equity of 36.71% and a negative net margin of 678.40%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted ($1.22) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -3.36 EPS 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).