Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report released on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on VIR. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised Vir Biotechnology from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $25.00 target price on Vir Biotechnology in a report on Thursday, August 6th. HC Wainwright boosted their target price on Vir Biotechnology from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Monday, September 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.86.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VIR opened at $11.52 on Tuesday. Vir Biotechnology has a fifty-two week low of $4.82 and a fifty-two week high of $11.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.95 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.19 and a beta of 1.59. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $10.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.76.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $238.95 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $135.88 million. Vir Biotechnology’s revenue was up 19582.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.80) EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Vir Biotechnology will post -1.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Vir Biotechnology

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 384.9% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 126,141 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,285,000 after acquiring an additional 100,128 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 29.9% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 32,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 7,416 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP lifted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 311,002 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,169,000 after purchasing an additional 17,314 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 25.8% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 164,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,673,000 after purchasing an additional 33,644 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $180,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.32% of the company’s stock.

Vir Biotechnology Company Profile

Vir Biotechnology, Inc is a clinical-stage immunology company focused on developing treatments and preventive therapies for serious infectious diseases. The company uses immunologic insights, antibody technology, cellular approaches and other scientific platforms to address diseases in which the immune system plays a central role.

Vir’s research and development programs have included therapies for chronic hepatitis B, influenza, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and COVID-19. Its pipeline has included investigational antibody and immunomodulatory candidates such as tobevibart and elebsiran for hepatitis B, as well as programs designed to prevent or treat other viral infections.