Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Buys 122,219 Shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. $VIR

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 9.8% in Q1, owning over 1.37 million shares valued at approximately $8.91 million.
• Insider selling occurred recently, with EVP Mark Eisner and Director Vicki L. Sato reducing their shareholdings, indicating potential concerns about the company's performance.
• Vir Biotechnology reported a quarterly net loss and revenue decline, missing earnings and revenue estimates, with a significant drop in year-over-year performance.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR - Free Report) by 9.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,374,874 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 122,219 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 1.00% of Vir Biotechnology worth $8,909,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VIR. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Vir Biotechnology in the fourth quarter worth $42,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 524.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,111 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 5,972 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 26.2% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 10,459 shares of the company's stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 2,171 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Vir Biotechnology in the first quarter worth $78,000. Finally, Nebula Research & Development LLC bought a new stake in Vir Biotechnology in the fourth quarter worth $84,000. 65.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VIR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Bank of America raised Vir Biotechnology from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $12.00 to $14.00 in a report on Wednesday. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on Vir Biotechnology in a report on Friday, July 11th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $28.44.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

Shares of Vir Biotechnology stock traded down $0.10 during trading on Friday, hitting $4.94. 1,676,623 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,541,118. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. has a 1 year low of $4.16 and a 1 year high of $14.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $686.26 million, a P/E ratio of -1.24 and a beta of 1.28. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $5.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.85.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) last released 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 period last year, the business earned ($1.02) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 60.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -3.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Vir Biotechnology news, EVP Mark Eisner sold 6,796 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.47, for a total value of $37,174.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 108,204 shares of the company's stock, 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 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 dated Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.10, for a total value of $112,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,298,391 shares in the company, valued at $6,621,794.10. The trade was a 1.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 57,582 shares of company stock worth $294,930 over the last three months. 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).