UBS Group AG Buys 203,203 Shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. $VIR

UBS Group AG increased its stake in Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) by 94.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 417,965 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 203,203 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG’s holdings in Vir Biotechnology were worth $2,520,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of VIR. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Vir Biotechnology in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in Vir Biotechnology by 25.9% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 6,761 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,390 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in Vir Biotechnology by 153.8% in the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 8,085 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 4,899 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC grew its position in Vir Biotechnology by 23.0% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 8,804 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,646 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.32% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Vir Biotechnology

In other news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 22,000 shares of Vir Biotechnology stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.05, for a total transaction of $221,100.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,078,391 shares in the company, valued at $10,837,829.55. The trade was a 2.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Backer Marianne De sold 72,559 shares of Vir Biotechnology stock in a transaction on Monday, April 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.16, for a total value of $664,640.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 948,145 shares in the company, valued at $8,685,008.20. The trade was a 7.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 146,270 shares of company stock worth $1,364,825 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Vir Biotechnology from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $19.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $18.00 price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Leerink Partners reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $20.00 price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Vir Biotechnology from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vir Biotechnology has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.25.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

VIR opened at $9.38 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.00 and a beta of 1.70. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. has a 1 year low of $4.16 and a 1 year high of $11.66. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $9.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $7.84.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.85) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.84). The business had revenue of ($0.03) million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.49 million. Vir Biotechnology had a negative return on equity of 53.31% and a negative net margin of 638.88%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.88) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -2.05 EPS for the current year.

Vir Biotechnology Company 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.