Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Raised to “Overweight” at Morgan Stanley

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) was upgraded by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a $20.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $10.00. Morgan Stanley’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 60.26% from the company’s previous close.

VIR has been the topic 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 research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Vir Biotechnology from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.80.

Vir Biotechnology Trading Up 58.2 %

Shares of VIR stock opened at $12.48 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.72 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.18 and a beta of 0.51. Vir Biotechnology has a 12 month low of $6.56 and a 12 month high of $14.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $8.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $8.31.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported ($1.56) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.05) by ($0.51). The firm had revenue of $2.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 million. Vir Biotechnology had a negative return on equity of 36.71% and a negative net margin of 678.40%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned ($1.22) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology will post -3.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vir Biotechnology

In related news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 10,960 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total transaction of $137,219.20. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,312,391 shares in the company, valued at $16,431,135.32. This represents a 0.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 14,786 shares of company stock worth $170,172 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 15.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 143.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,989 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 2,351 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 194,208 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,455,000 after buying an additional 2,600 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 48,987 shares of the company’s stock valued at $436,000 after buying an additional 3,605 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 0.8% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 813,288 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,238,000 after acquiring an additional 6,359 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 1.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 550,186 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,121,000 after acquiring an additional 7,287 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.32% of the company’s stock.

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).