Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Upgraded at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a research note released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have $20.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $10.00.

VIR has been the subject of several other reports. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $37.80.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Performance

NASDAQ VIR opened at $12.48 on Thursday. Vir Biotechnology has a fifty-two week low of $6.56 and a fifty-two week high of $14.45. The stock has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.18 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.34.

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

Insider Transactions at Vir Biotechnology

In other Vir Biotechnology news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 10,960 shares of Vir Biotechnology stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total value of $137,219.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,312,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,431,135.32. The trade was a 0.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 14,786 shares of company stock valued at $170,172 in the last ninety days. 15.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VIR. State Street Corp boosted its stake in 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. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Vir Biotechnology by 94.6% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,248,131 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,108,000 after buying an additional 606,804 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Vir Biotechnology by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,134,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,496,000 after buying an additional 136,087 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 813,288 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,238,000 after acquiring an additional 6,359 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 637,486 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,673,000 after acquiring an additional 58,360 shares during the last quarter. 65.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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).