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

Key Points

• Analysts assign Vir a consensus rating of Moderate Buy from 10 firms (1 sell, 8 buy, 1 strong buy) with an average 1‑year price target of $20.44.
• Vir beat the quarter's EPS estimate (reported loss of $0.31 vs. consensus -$0.42) and revenue rose to $64.07M (up 417.8% YoY), but the company remains deeply unprofitable with a negative ROE (~49.3%) and net margin (~-638.9%), and analysts forecast -3.92 EPS for the year.
• Insiders have sold a total of 177,546 shares (~$1.52M) in the past three months while institutional investors own 65.32% of the stock, including a new ~ $65.1M stake by ARCH Venture Management.

Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the ten ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $20.4444.

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Vir Biotechnology from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. HC Wainwright raised their price objective on Vir Biotechnology from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Vir Biotechnology from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Leerink Partners reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $20.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Thursday, February 26th.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

Shares of Vir Biotechnology stock opened at $9.26 on Friday. Vir Biotechnology has a 1-year low of $4.16 and a 1-year high of $10.94. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $7.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $6.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, a PE ratio of -2.93 and a beta of 1.65.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported ($0.31) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by $0.11. Vir Biotechnology had a negative return on equity of 49.31% and a negative net margin of 638.88%.The firm had revenue of $64.07 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.91 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.76) EPS. Vir Biotechnology's revenue was up 417.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Vir Biotechnology will post -3.92 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vir Biotechnology news, EVP Verneuil Vanina De sold 13,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.82, for a total value of $134,534.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 112,982 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,109,483.24. This represents a 10.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 42,377 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.75, for a total value of $413,175.75. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,144,391 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,157,812.25. This represents a 3.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 177,546 shares of company stock worth $1,522,174 over the last three months. 16.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vir Biotechnology

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. ARCH Venture Management LLC purchased a new stake in Vir Biotechnology during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $65,100,000. Aberdeen Group plc raised its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 51.6% during the third quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 1,526,265 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,715,000 after buying an additional 519,374 shares during the last quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 812.7% in the second quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 582,981 shares of the company's stock worth $2,938,000 after buying an additional 519,107 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the second quarter worth $63,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 30.3% during the second quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 49,910 shares of the company's stock worth $252,000 after acquiring an additional 11,620 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.32% of the company's stock.

About Vir Biotechnology

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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