Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $7.89, but opened at $12.55. Vir Biotechnology shares last traded at $11.61, with a volume of 10,778,855 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Vir Biotechnology from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $36.40.

Vir Biotechnology Trading Up 68.6 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.83 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.39 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $7.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.28.

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 firm had revenue of $2.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($1.22) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -3.36 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $8,496,000 after buying an additional 136,087 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 10.4% in 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 purchased a new position in Vir Biotechnology in the second quarter worth $1,780,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 180.6% during 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its position 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 worth $11,108,000 after purchasing an additional 606,804 shares in the last quarter. 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).