527,800 Shares in Vir Biotechnology, Inc. $VIR Purchased by Empyrean Capital Partners LP

Empyrean Capital Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 527,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,729,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 10,878.9% during the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,480,828 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,268,000 after purchasing an additional 1,467,340 shares in the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. grew its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 10.1% in the first quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 1,135,763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,176,000 after purchasing an additional 104,100 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 94.6% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 417,965 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,520,000 after purchasing an additional 203,203 shares in the last quarter. OP Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Vir Biotechnology during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,013,000. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Vir Biotechnology during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,443,000. 65.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on VIR shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $23.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Leerink Partners upped their price objective on Vir Biotechnology from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Wall Street Zen cut Vir Biotechnology from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.88.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 22,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.05, for a total value of $221,100.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,078,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,837,829.55. This represents a 2.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Janet Napolitano sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.45, for a total value of $30,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 21,216 shares in the company, valued at $200,491.20. This trade represents a 13.11% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 25,579 shares of company stock worth $254,922. Insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Vir Biotechnology Stock Performance

VIR stock opened at $8.80 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $9.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.89. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $4.16 and a fifty-two week high of $11.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.81 and a beta of 1.62.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.85) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.84). Vir Biotechnology had a negative net margin of 638.88% and a negative return on equity of 53.31%. The firm had revenue of ($0.03) million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.49 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.88) EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -1.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vir Biotechnology Profile

Vir Biotechnology, Inc is a clinical?stage immunology company dedicated to developing therapies that prevent and treat serious infectious diseases. The company leverages a suite of proprietary technology platforms—ranging from antibody isolation and screening tools to cell?based assays and bioinformatics—to identify and advance antiviral and antibacterial candidates. Its scientific approach centers on harnessing the human immune system through monoclonal antibodies and immunomodulatory agents.

The company’s pipeline includes product candidates targeting influenza A, COVID?19, HIV, hepatitis B, and tuberculosis.