Walleye Capital LLC Lowers Position in Vir Biotechnology, Inc. $VIR

Key Points

• Walleye Capital LLC has reduced its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 42.2%, now owning approximately 0.18% of the company worth $1.6 million after selling over 183,000 shares during the first quarter.
• Vir Biotechnology's stock has been rated as a "Moderate Buy" by analysts, with an 8-1 ratio of buy to hold ratings, despite reporting poor quarterly earnings that missed estimates.
• Insider trading activity includes notable sales by executives, with 57,582 shares sold in the last 90 days, accounting for 16% of the company being held by corporate insiders.

Walleye Capital LLC cut its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR - Free Report) by 42.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 250,966 shares of the company's stock after selling 183,494 shares during the quarter. Walleye Capital LLC owned 0.18% of Vir Biotechnology worth $1,626,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VIR. Baker BROS. Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the 4th quarter valued at $7,961,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 16,169.5% in the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 848,454 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,228,000 after purchasing an additional 843,239 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 58.0% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,915,465 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,059,000 after purchasing an additional 703,360 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 55.3% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,715,083 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,589,000 after purchasing an additional 610,367 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sphera Funds Management LTD. raised its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 523.4% in the 4th quarter. Sphera Funds Management LTD. now owns 581,829 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,271,000 after purchasing an additional 488,500 shares in the last quarter. 65.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VIR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Bank of America upgraded shares of Vir Biotechnology from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $12.00 to $14.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $14.00 price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note 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 assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $28.44.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Performance

Vir Biotechnology stock traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $5.00. 1,321,884 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,591,093. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. has a 12-month low of $4.16 and a 12-month high of $14.45. The stock has a market cap of $694.60 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.25 and a beta of 1.28. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $5.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.82.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.80) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 period in the previous year, the business posted ($1.02) earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 60.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -3.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vir Biotechnology

In other Vir Biotechnology news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 22,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.10, for a total transaction of $112,200.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,298,391 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,621,794.10. This trade represents a 1.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Mark Eisner sold 6,796 shares of Vir Biotechnology stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were 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 directly owned 108,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $591,875.88. The trade was a 5.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 54,382 shares of company stock worth $278,770 over the last three months. 16.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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).