Principal Financial Group Inc. Increases Stock Position in Vir Biotechnology, Inc. $VIR

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) by 21.6% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 547,753 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 97,158 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Vir Biotechnology were worth $4,908,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 19.2% during the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 27,914 shares of the company’s stock worth $250,000 after acquiring an additional 4,493 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in shares of Vir Biotechnology by 1,320.6% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 26,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 24,471 shares in the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. raised its holdings in Vir Biotechnology by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 1,135,763 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,176,000 after purchasing an additional 104,100 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Vir Biotechnology by 18.9% in the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 25,768 shares of the company’s stock worth $231,000 after purchasing an additional 4,100 shares during the period. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Vir Biotechnology during the first quarter worth approximately $1,206,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.32% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on VIR shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Vir Biotechnology from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Leerink Partners upped their target price on Vir Biotechnology from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Vir Biotechnology from $23.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vir Biotechnology in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $20.88.

Vir Biotechnology Price Performance

NASDAQ VIR opened at $8.85 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $9.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $8.91. The company has a market cap of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of -2.83 and a beta of 1.62. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. has a 1-year low of $4.16 and a 1-year high of $11.66.

Vir Biotechnology (NASDAQ:VIR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.85) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.84). Vir Biotechnology had a negative return on equity of 53.31% and a negative net margin of 638.88%.The firm had revenue of ($0.03) million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.49 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.88) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Vir Biotechnology, Inc. will post -1.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vir Biotechnology

In other news, Director Vicki L. Sato sold 22,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.05, for a total value of $221,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,078,391 shares in the company, valued at $10,837,829.55. This represents a 2.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Janet Napolitano sold 3,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.45, for a total transaction of $30,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 21,216 shares in the company, valued at approximately $200,491.20. This represents a 13.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 25,579 shares of company stock worth $254,922. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Vir Biotechnology

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.