Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Stock Gets Price Target Bump from Morgan Stanley

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley raised Vir Biotechnology’s price target from $25 to $28 and maintained an Overweight rating, implying about 110% upside from the stock’s cited price.
• Analyst views are broadly positive: MarketBeat reported a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target of $22.57, though ratings included one Sell.
• Vir reported a quarterly loss of $0.57 per share, beating estimates of a $0.75 loss; revenue was below expectations and fell sharply year over year. Separately, the article notes the company’s hepatitis D combination met the primary endpoint in a Phase 3 trial, but the therapy is not yet approved.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $25.00 to $28.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price target would indicate a potential upside of 109.82% from the company's current price.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on VIR. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Monday. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Vir Biotechnology from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.57.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Performance

VIR stock traded down $0.30 on Tuesday, reaching $13.35. The company had a trading volume of 521,065 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,375,972. The company's fifty day moving average is $11.09 and its 200 day moving average is $9.65. The company has a market cap of $2.26 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.55 and a beta of 1.70. Vir Biotechnology has a 1 year low of $5.32 and a 1 year high of $14.38.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.57) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.75) by $0.18. The company had revenue of ($0.19) million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $0.98 million. The business's quarterly revenue was down 178.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($1.17) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Vanina de Verneuil sold 2,407 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.10, for a total transaction of $26,717.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 110,193 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,223,142.30. The trade was a 2.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the second quarter valued at $210,712,000. ARCH Venture Management LLC bought a new position in Vir Biotechnology in the 2nd quarter valued at about $129,353,521. ADAR1 Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the first quarter valued at approximately $24,593,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 1.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,579,678 shares of the company's stock valued at $23,107,000 after acquiring an additional 43,401 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the second quarter valued at approximately $11,642,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.32% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Vir Biotechnology

Here are the key news stories impacting Vir Biotechnology this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vir said its monthly combination of elebsiran and tobevibart met the primary endpoint in the Phase 3 ECLIPSE 1 trial and also met secondary endpoints in adults with chronic hepatitis D. The company described the results as a major step toward addressing the disease; investors responded to the late-stage evidence of efficacy. Vir's ECLIPSE 1 trial announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Additional Phase 2 SOLSTICE data showed deep, sustained viral suppression, while exploratory finite-treatment results offer a potential path to treatment without indefinite dosing. These findings add support to the program, though they are earlier-stage than ECLIPSE 1. Vir's SOLSTICE data announcement
• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright reaffirmed its Buy rating and $22 price target, adding a bullish analyst view alongside the trial news. HC Wainwright rating information
• Neutral Sentiment: The Phase 3 result is an important milestone, but the therapy is not yet approved. Regulatory review and the company’s ability to compete in hepatitis D will remain important considerations for investors. Coverage of Vir's Phase 3 result

Vir Biotechnology Company Profile

Vir Biotechnology is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing treatments for infectious diseases and cancer. Its research draws on immunology and includes approaches such as monoclonal antibodies, small-interfering RNA therapies and T-cell-based treatments. The company's pipeline has included programs targeting chronic hepatitis B and influenza, as well as investigational cancer therapies. Vir has also pursued research and development collaborations to advance its programs.

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