Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $33.57.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Vir Biotechnology from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the company from $10.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Vir Biotechnology from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Vir Biotechnology from $28.00 to $21.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Leerink Partners upped their price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vir Biotechnology

In other news, Director George A. Scangos sold 10,964 shares of Vir Biotechnology stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.81, for a total transaction of $107,556.84. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 708,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,948,373.95. This trade represents a 1.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Backer Marianne De sold 79,712 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.95, for a total value of $474,286.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 769,505 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,578,554.75. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 99,611 shares of company stock valued at $663,525 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 15.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VIR. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Vir Biotechnology by 524.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,111 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 5,972 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the 4th quarter worth about $60,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 31.8% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,288 shares of the company's stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 1,999 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 136.5% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 8,970 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 5,177 shares in the last quarter. 65.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Performance

VIR stock traded down $0.09 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $6.04. 311,404 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,337,489. The firm has a market cap of $833.22 million, a P/E ratio of -1.54 and a beta of 1.14. Vir Biotechnology has a 1-year low of $4.95 and a 1-year high of $14.45. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $6.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.06.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.76) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.85) by $0.09. Vir Biotechnology had a negative net margin of 678.40% and a negative return on equity of 36.71%. The company had revenue of $12.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.14 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology will post -3.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vir Biotechnology Company 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).