SB Investment Advisers UK Ltd. Sells 2,168,884 Shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. $VIR

Key Points

• SB Investment Advisers UK Ltd. reduced its Vir Biotechnology stake by 16.5%, selling 2,168,884 shares in the first quarter. It still held 10.95 million shares, representing 6.49% of Vir and about 1.3% of the investment firm’s portfolio.
• Vir Biotechnology reported a significant quarterly earnings miss, posting a loss of $0.85 per share versus the $0.01 consensus estimate and revenue of negative $0.03 million versus expectations of $55.49 million. Analysts project a full-year loss of $1.81 per share.
• Despite mixed ratings and recent insider selling, analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $20.88, well above the stock’s reported price of $8.85.

SB Investment Advisers UK Ltd. lessened its holdings in Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR - Free Report) by 16.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,948,093 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,168,884 shares during the period. Vir Biotechnology comprises about 1.3% of SB Investment Advisers UK Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. SB Investment Advisers UK Ltd. owned 6.49% of Vir Biotechnology worth $98,095,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 10,878.9% during the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,480,828 shares of the company's stock worth $13,268,000 after buying an additional 1,467,340 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. grew its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 1,135,763 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,176,000 after acquiring an additional 104,100 shares during the period. UBS Group AG grew its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 94.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 417,965 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,520,000 after acquiring an additional 203,203 shares during the period. OP Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Vir Biotechnology in the 1st quarter worth $1,013,000. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Vir Biotechnology in the 1st quarter worth $1,443,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.32% of the company's stock.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Performance

NASDAQ VIR opened at $8.85 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $9.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $8.91. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. has a one year low of $4.16 and a one year high of $11.66. The company has a market cap of $1.49 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.83 and a beta of 1.62.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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). Vir Biotechnology had a negative return on equity of 53.31% and a negative net margin of 638.88%.The business had revenue of ($0.03) million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.49 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.88) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -1.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VIR has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Leerink Partners increased their price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Vir Biotechnology from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Vir Biotechnology from $23.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vir Biotechnology has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $20.88.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Janet Napolitano sold 3,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.45, for a total value of $30,240.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 21,216 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $200,491.20. This trade represents a 13.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 22,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.05, for a total transaction of $221,100.00. Following the transaction, 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 three months, insiders sold 25,579 shares of company stock worth $254,922. Insiders own 2.90% of the company's stock.

Vir Biotechnology 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.