Leerink Partners Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Stock

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) had its price objective lifted by equities researchers at Leerink Partners from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Leerink Partners’ price objective suggests a potential upside of 137.02% from the company’s current price.

VIR has been the subject of several other research reports. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Vir Biotechnology from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $19.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $14.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Barclays raised their price objective on Vir Biotechnology from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, HC Wainwright lifted their target price on Vir Biotechnology from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.38.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

Shares of VIR traded up $0.12 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $8.86. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 199,376 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,774,760. Vir Biotechnology has a 12-month low of $4.16 and a 12-month high of $11.66. The stock has a market cap of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of -2.83 and a beta of 1.65. The company’s 50 day moving average is $9.49 and its 200 day moving average is $7.96.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.85) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.84). The business had revenue of ($0.03) million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.49 million. Vir Biotechnology had a negative return on equity of 53.31% and a negative net margin of 638.88%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.88) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vir Biotechnology will post -1.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vir Biotechnology

In other news, CEO Backer Marianne De sold 72,559 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.16, for a total value of $664,640.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 948,145 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,685,008.20. This represents a 7.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CAO Brent Sabatini sold 7,711 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.12, for a total transaction of $70,324.32. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 61,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $564,546.24. This trade represents a 11.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 127,849 shares of company stock valued at $1,189,426. Insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vir Biotechnology

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GSK plc purchased a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $51,562,000. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 18.9% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,229,555 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,564,000 after purchasing an additional 988,262 shares during the last quarter. ADAR1 Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the first quarter worth $24,593,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Vir Biotechnology by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,579,678 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,107,000 after buying an additional 43,401 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Orbimed Advisors LLC increased its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Orbimed Advisors LLC now owns 2,380,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,999,000 after buying an additional 132,466 shares during the period. 65.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.