Baker BROS. Advisors LP Sells 542,000 Shares of 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 lowered its position in Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR - Free Report) by 50.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor 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 SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in 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 in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in 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 in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in 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 in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP boosted its position in 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.32% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on VIR. Bank of America raised Vir Biotechnology from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $12.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 27th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $14.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial began coverage on Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Friday, July 11th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Eight 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 stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $28.44.

Vir Biotechnology Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of VIR opened at $4.94 on Tuesday. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. has a 12 month low of $4.16 and a 12 month high of $14.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $5.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.82. The firm has a market cap of $686.26 million, a PE ratio of -1.24 and a beta of 1.28.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.80) 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 business had revenue of $1.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.38 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($1.02) EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 60.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -3.92 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vir Biotechnology

In other news, EVP Mark Eisner sold 6,796 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.47, for a total transaction of $37,174.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 108,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $591,875.88. This represents a 5.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 22,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.99, for a total value of $109,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,276,391 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,369,191.09. This trade represents a 1.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 54,382 shares of company stock valued at $278,770. Company 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).

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