Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Upgraded to Hold at Zacks Research

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Vir Biotechnology from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $25.00 price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, HC Wainwright boosted their price objective on shares of Vir Biotechnology from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.14.

Vir Biotechnology Trading Down 6.4%

NASDAQ VIR opened at $11.02 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $1.86 billion, a PE ratio of -8.75 and a beta of 1.70. Vir Biotechnology has a 12 month low of $4.82 and a 12 month high of $12.19. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $11.01 and a 200-day moving average of $9.58.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.57) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.75) by $0.18. The firm had revenue of ($0.19) million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $0.98 million. Vir Biotechnology’s quarterly revenue was down 178.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($1.17) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology will post -1.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Vanina de Verneuil sold 2,407 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.10, for a total value of $26,717.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 110,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,223,142.30. This trade represents a 2.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 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. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Vir Biotechnology during the 2nd quarter valued at $210,712,000. ARCH Venture Management LLC bought a new position in Vir Biotechnology during the second quarter worth $129,353,521. ADAR1 Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Vir Biotechnology during the first quarter worth $24,593,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in Vir Biotechnology during the second quarter worth $11,642,000. Finally, Avidity Partners Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology in the first quarter valued at $8,512,000. 65.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Vir Biotechnology News

Here are the key news stories impacting Vir Biotechnology this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Needham raised its price target to $20 from $18 and maintained a Buy rating, signaling a more bullish analyst view. Needham rating details
• Positive Sentiment: Vir said it expects to present topline Phase 3 ECLIPSE 1 results for elebsiran and tobevibart at AASLD’s 2026 liver meeting. The data could be an important catalyst for the company’s hepatitis delta program. AASLD presentation announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Management expects its cash runway to extend into the second half of 2028, helping fund development, while the timing and outcome of upcoming clinical catalysts remain uncertain. Cash runway and trial timing
• Neutral Sentiment: An executive’s small stock sale was made under a pre-arranged plan to cover tax withholding on vested equity awards, making it a limited signal about the company’s outlook. Insider transaction details
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue was negative $0.19 million, below the roughly $0.98 million expected and down 178.3% year over year. Although the loss of $0.57 per share was narrower than analysts’ estimates, the revenue miss may be overshadowing that earnings beat. Q3 results and corporate update

Vir Biotechnology Company Profile

Vir Biotechnology, Inc is a clinical-stage immunology company focused on developing medicines to prevent and treat serious infectious diseases and other immune-related conditions. The company uses antibody engineering, immunologic approaches and other technologies to identify and advance therapies designed to harness or modify the immune system.

Vir’s research and development programs have included treatments and vaccines for hepatitis B, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), influenza and other infectious diseases.