Baker BROS. Advisors LP Lowers Holdings in Vir Biotechnology, Inc. $VIR

Key Points

• Baker BROS. Advisors LP has reduced its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 50%, selling 542,000 shares and holding approximately 0.39% of the company worth $3.52 million as of its most recent filing.
• Institutional investors own 65.32% of Vir Biotechnology's shares, with several hedge funds, like Dimensional Fund Advisors and Millennium Management, significantly increasing their positions last quarter.
• Vir Biotechnology recently received upgrades from multiple brokerages, raising the stock’s target price to $14.00, although it currently has a low average stock price in the range of $4.16 to $14.45.

Baker BROS. Advisors LP decreased its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR - Free Report) by 50.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 542,539 shares of the company's stock after selling 542,000 shares during the quarter. Baker BROS. Advisors LP owned approximately 0.39% of Vir Biotechnology worth $3,516,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position 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. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 55.3% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,715,083 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,589,000 after acquiring an additional 610,367 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,374,874 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,909,000 after acquiring an additional 122,219 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position 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. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 60.9% during the 4th quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 849,873 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,238,000 after acquiring an additional 321,631 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.32% of the company's stock.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Up 2.5%

NASDAQ:VIR traded up $0.13 on Friday, reaching $5.27. 1,021,099 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,559,770. The firm has a market capitalization of $732.11 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.32 and a beta of 1.28. The business has a fifty day moving average of $5.09 and a 200-day moving average of $5.69. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. has a 52-week low of $4.16 and a 52-week high of $14.45.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VIR. Evercore ISI began 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. 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. Raymond James Financial began 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 upgraded shares of Vir Biotechnology from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $12.00 to $14.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $26.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Mark Eisner sold 6,796 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.47, for a total transaction of $37,174.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 108,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $591,875.88. This trade represents a 5.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 22,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.10, for a total transaction of $112,200.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,298,391 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,621,794.10. This trade represents a 1.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 76,382 shares of company stock worth $388,550. Insiders own 16.00% of the company's stock.

Vir Biotechnology 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).