WINTON GROUP Ltd Buys 131,555 Shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. $VIR

Key Points

• WINTON GROUP Ltd significantly increased its Vir Biotechnology stake, buying 131,555 additional shares in Q4 and raising its holding by 227.8% to 189,306 shares worth about $1.14 million.
• Vir Biotechnology reported a worse-than-expected quarterly loss, posting EPS of ($0.85) versus a consensus of ($0.01), with revenue also far below analyst estimates.
• Despite weak fundamentals, several analysts remain bullish: the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $20.38, while institutional ownership remains high at 65.32%.

WINTON GROUP Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR - Free Report) by 227.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 189,306 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 131,555 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd owned about 0.14% of Vir Biotechnology worth $1,142,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Vir Biotechnology during the 2nd quarter worth $35,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in Vir Biotechnology in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in Vir Biotechnology by 25.9% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 6,761 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,390 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 153.8% during the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 8,085 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 4,899 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 23.0% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 8,804 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,646 shares in the last quarter. 65.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Performance

Shares of VIR stock opened at $8.51 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $1.44 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.72 and a beta of 1.65. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.09. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $4.16 and a fifty-two week high of $11.66.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.85) 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 company had revenue of ($0.03) million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.49 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.88) EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -1.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vir Biotechnology

In other Vir Biotechnology news, CAO Brent Sabatini sold 7,711 shares of Vir Biotechnology stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.12, for a total value of $70,324.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 61,902 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $564,546.24. The trade was a 11.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 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 directly owned 1,078,391 shares in the company, valued at $10,837,829.55. This trade represents a 2.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 127,849 shares of company stock valued at $1,189,426. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VIR has been the topic of several research reports. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on Vir Biotechnology from $14.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $18.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. HC Wainwright boosted their target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Vir Biotechnology from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $19.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. One research 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $20.38.

Vir Biotechnology Company 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.

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