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

Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders purchased 6,929 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 933% compared to the typical volume of 671 call options.

Vir Biotechnology Trading Up 58.2 %

Shares of VIR opened at $12.48 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a PE ratio of -3.18 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $8.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $8.31. Vir Biotechnology has a 12-month low of $6.56 and a 12-month high of $14.45.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last posted its earnings results 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). The business had revenue of $2.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.54 million. Vir Biotechnology had a negative net margin of 678.40% and a negative return on equity of 36.71%. Vir Biotechnology’s quarterly revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($1.22) earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology will post -3.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 10,960 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total transaction of $137,219.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,312,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,431,135.32. This trade represents a 0.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders sold 14,786 shares of company stock valued at $170,172 over the last quarter. 15.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp raised its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 10.4% during 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 period. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Vir Biotechnology by 94.6% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,248,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,108,000 after purchasing an additional 606,804 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 13.6% in the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 813,288 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,238,000 after buying an additional 6,359 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Vir Biotechnology by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 637,486 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,673,000 after buying an additional 58,360 shares during the last quarter. 65.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 target price on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Vir Biotechnology from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vir Biotechnology currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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).