Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Given New $14.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) had its price objective hoisted by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $10.00 to $14.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 12.18% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on VIR. Morgan Stanley raised Vir Biotechnology from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $10.00 to $20.00 in a report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.80.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VIR opened at $12.48 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.18 and a beta of 0.51. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $8.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.31. Vir Biotechnology has a fifty-two week low of $6.56 and a fifty-two week high of $14.45.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported ($1.56) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 earned ($1.22) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology will post -3.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vir Biotechnology

In other news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 10,960 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 8th. The shares were 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 trade represents a 0.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 14,786 shares of company stock worth $170,172. Corporate insiders own 15.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 13.6% during 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 buying an additional 136,087 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 10.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,625,533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,135,000 after acquiring an additional 530,645 shares in the last quarter. Affinity Asset Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Vir Biotechnology in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,780,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 12,598 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 94.6% during 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 during the last quarter. 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).