Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Stock Price Down 8.7% – Here’s What Happened

Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR)’s share price dropped 8.7% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $8.34 and last traded at $8.40. Approximately 599,299 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 43% from the average daily volume of 1,055,193 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.20.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VIR has been the topic of several recent research reports. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Vir Biotechnology from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vir Biotechnology presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $36.40.

Vir Biotechnology Trading Down 8.5 %

The firm has a market cap of $1.16 billion, a PE ratio of -2.14 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $8.77.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last announced its quarterly 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). Vir Biotechnology had a negative net margin of 678.40% and a negative return on equity of 36.71%. The business had revenue of $2.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($1.22) EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -3.36 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vir Biotechnology news, Director Janet Napolitano sold 12,190 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.80, for a total value of $95,082.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,616 shares in the company, valued at approximately $90,604.80. This represents a 51.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 15,940 shares of company stock valued at $127,410. 15.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vir Biotechnology

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Affinity Asset Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,780,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 180.6% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 19,572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $174,000 after purchasing an additional 12,598 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 94.6% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,248,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,108,000 after purchasing an additional 606,804 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 142.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 12,695 shares of the company’s stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 7,452 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,485,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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).