Needham & Company LLC Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) Stock

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) had its target price raised by analysts at Needham & Company LLC from $18.00 to $20.00 in a research note issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC‘s target price points to a potential upside of 63.80% from the company’s previous close.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Zacks Research downgraded Vir Biotechnology from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. HC Wainwright upped their target price on Vir Biotechnology from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $25.00 price target on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Vir Biotechnology from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated 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 assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.14.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

Vir Biotechnology stock traded up $1.19 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $12.21. 1,887,037 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,781,703. Vir Biotechnology has a fifty-two week low of $4.82 and a fifty-two week high of $12.45. The company has a market capitalization of $2.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.69 and a beta of 1.70. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $11.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $9.61.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.57) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.75) by $0.18. The company had revenue of ($0.19) million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $0.98 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($1.17) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 178.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Vir Biotechnology will post -1.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Vanina de Verneuil sold 2,407 shares of Vir Biotechnology stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.10, for a total transaction of $26,717.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 110,193 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,223,142.30. This trade represents a 2.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vir Biotechnology

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. ADAR1 Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vir Biotechnology during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,034,000. Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Vir Biotechnology during the second quarter valued at $4,843,000. ARCH Venture Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vir Biotechnology during the second quarter valued at $129,353,521. Candriam S.C.A. grew its position in Vir Biotechnology by 10.1% during the first quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 1,135,763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,176,000 after buying an additional 104,100 shares during the period. Finally, BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Vir Biotechnology in the second quarter valued at $210,712,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.32% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Vir Biotechnology

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment improved: Needham raised its price target to $20 from $18 and maintained a Buy rating. Zacks Research also upgraded VIR from Strong Sell to Hold, reducing a bearish signal. Needham rating Zacks rating
• Positive Sentiment: Key clinical catalyst ahead: Vir plans to present topline Phase 3 ECLIPSE 1 results for elebsiran and tobevibart in chronic hepatitis delta at AASLD’s 2026 liver meeting. Positive data could be a meaningful catalyst, though the outcome is uncertain. AASLD data presentation
• Positive Sentiment: Cash runway extends into the second half of 2028, giving the company additional time to advance its pipeline and reach development milestones. Cash runway update
• Neutral Sentiment: Q3 loss beat expectations: Vir reported a loss of $0.57 per share, narrower than analysts’ expected loss of about $0.75–$0.80 and the $1.17 loss a year earlier. Q3 results
• Neutral Sentiment: An executive sold a small number of shares under a pre-arranged plan to cover tax withholding on vested equity awards; the stated purpose makes this less indicative of a change in outlook. SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue missed sharply: Q3 revenue was negative $0.19 million versus analysts’ estimate of $0.98 million, and was down 178.3% year over year, tempering the earnings beat. Revenue results

About Vir Biotechnology

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.