Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Given New $31.00 Price Target at Barclays

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) had its target price raised by Barclays from $26.00 to $31.00 in a report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on VIR. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Friday. Leerink Partners lifted their target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Vir Biotechnology from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $10.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.67.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Performance

NASDAQ VIR opened at $8.39 on Friday. Vir Biotechnology has a 52-week low of $6.56 and a 52-week high of $14.45. The company has a market capitalization of $1.16 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.14 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a fifty day moving average of $9.46 and a 200-day moving average of $8.49.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 10,960 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 0.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director George A. Scangos sold 10,964 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.81, for a total transaction 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 trade 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 30,935 shares of company stock valued at $327,082. Insiders own 15.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury raised its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 39,268 shares of the company’s stock worth $288,000 after buying an additional 1,227 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 236,681 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,737,000 after buying an additional 1,288 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 31.8% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,288 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 1,999 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 143.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,989 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 2,351 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 10.7% in the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 26,440 shares of the company’s stock worth $194,000 after buying an additional 2,556 shares in the last quarter. 65.32% of the stock is owned by 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).