Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR)

Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Traders bought 6,929 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 933% compared to the typical daily volume of 671 call options.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

Shares of VIR stock traded up $4.59 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $12.48. 39,456,292 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,750,732. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $8.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $8.31. The firm has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a PE ratio of -3.18 and a beta of 0.51. Vir Biotechnology has a 1-year low of $6.56 and a 1-year high of $14.45.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported ($1.56) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.05) by ($0.51). Vir Biotechnology had a negative return on equity of 36.71% and a negative net margin of 678.40%. The firm had revenue of $2.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.54 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($1.22) earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Vir Biotechnology will post -3.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vir Biotechnology

In other Vir Biotechnology news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 10,960 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total transaction of $137,219.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,312,391 shares in the company, valued at $16,431,135.32. This represents a 0.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 14,786 shares of company stock worth $170,172 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 15.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VIR. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 13.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,134,276 shares of the company's stock worth $8,496,000 after acquiring an additional 136,087 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,625,533 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,135,000 after purchasing an additional 530,645 shares during the last quarter. Affinity Asset Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Vir Biotechnology in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,780,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd boosted its stake 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 worth $174,000 after purchasing an additional 12,598 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 94.6% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,248,131 shares of the company's stock worth $11,108,000 after buying an additional 606,804 shares in the last quarter. 65.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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).