Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) shares hit a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $6.25 and last traded at $6.48, with a volume of 1474142 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $6.70.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Vir Biotechnology from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $10.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Vir Biotechnology from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Vir Biotechnology from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Leerink Partners raised their target price on Vir Biotechnology from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $35.67.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $8.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.35. The firm has a market cap of $888.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.65 and a beta of 1.17.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.76) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.85) by $0.09. Vir Biotechnology had a negative return on equity of 36.71% and a negative net margin of 678.40%. The firm had revenue of $12.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.14 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -3.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vir Biotechnology

In other Vir Biotechnology news, EVP Verneuil Vanina De sold 7,373 shares of Vir Biotechnology stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.14, for a total transaction of $67,389.22. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 79,460 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $726,264.40. The trade was a 8.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director George A. Scangos sold 10,964 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.81, for a total value of $107,556.84. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 708,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,948,373.95. This represents a 1.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 30,859 shares of company stock valued at $326,458. 15.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VIR. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in Vir Biotechnology in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 31.8% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,288 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 1,999 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 136.5% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 8,970 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 5,177 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in Vir Biotechnology during the 4th quarter worth $74,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.32% of the company’s stock.

Vir Biotechnology Company Profile

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).