Leerink Partners Increases Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Price Target to $20.00

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) had its price objective raised by Leerink Partners from $18.00 to $20.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Leerink Partners’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 95.50% from the stock’s current price.

VIR has been the subject of several other reports. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays dropped their target price on Vir Biotechnology from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Vir Biotechnology from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Vir Biotechnology from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $10.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.83.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Down 2.8 %

VIR opened at $10.23 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $1.41 billion, a PE ratio of -2.61 and a beta of 0.51. The business has a 50 day moving average of $8.27 and a 200-day moving average of $8.37. Vir Biotechnology has a 52 week low of $6.56 and a 52 week high of $14.45.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported ($1.56) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.05) by ($0.51). The business had revenue of $2.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 million. Vir Biotechnology had a negative net margin of 678.40% and a negative return on equity of 36.71%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($1.22) EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Vir Biotechnology will post -3.36 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vir Biotechnology

In related news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 10,960 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total value of $137,219.20. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,312,391 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,431,135.32. This trade represents a 0.83 % 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. Insiders sold 14,786 shares of company stock worth $170,172 over the last quarter. 15.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Vir Biotechnology by 13.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,134,276 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,496,000 after acquiring an additional 136,087 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,625,533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,135,000 after purchasing an additional 530,645 shares during the last quarter. Affinity Asset Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the second quarter worth about $1,780,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd increased its holdings in Vir Biotechnology by 180.6% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 19,572 shares of the company’s stock worth $174,000 after acquiring an additional 12,598 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 94.6% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,248,131 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,108,000 after acquiring an additional 606,804 shares during the period. 65.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Vir Biotechnology

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).