- McCutcheon said findings presented for VIR-5500 surpassed expectations and strengthened Vir’s standing among therapies in prostate cancer.
- He noted that the results bolster confidence in Vir’s PRO-XTEN platform and add support to the company’s outlook for its hepatitis D regimen.
- Morgan Stanley analyst Michael Ulz increased his price target on Vir to $24 from $20.
Vir Biotechnology Inc. (VIR) received a pair of bullish calls from Wall Street after unveiling fresh clinical data and a sizable new drug partnership, prompting analysts to raise their ratings and price targets on the stock.
On Monday, the company reported strong fourth-quarter earnings and encouraging Phase 1 results for its cancer therapy study.
Raymond James Upgrades Vir Biotechnology
Raymond James analyst Sean McCutcheon upgraded the stock to ‘Strong Buy’ from ‘Outperform’ and lifted his price target to $19 from $12 following the series of corporate updates, according to TheFly.
According to McCutcheon, findings presented for VIR-5500 surpassed expectations and strengthened its standing among PSMA-directed T-cell engager therapies in prostate cancer.
He noted that the results bolster confidence in Vir’s PRO-XTEN platform and add support to the company’s outlook for its hepatitis D regimen combining tobevibart and elebsiran, which he believes has a viable regulatory path.
Vir Biotechnology stock traded over 60% higher in Tuesday’s premarket. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around the stock jumped to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘neutral’ territory the previous day. Message volume shifted to ‘extremely high’ from ‘high’ levels in 24 hours.
Separately, Morgan Stanley analyst Michael Ulz increased his price target on Vir to $24 from $20 while maintaining an ‘Overweight’ rating. Ulz said early-stage data for VIR-5500 reinforce its potential to emerge as a leading treatment option in prostate cancer.
New Partnership Adds Financial Backing
Vir also announced a collaboration with Astellas Pharma that includes $335 million in upfront and near-term payments. The agreement outlines a 50/50 profit split in the U.S. and royalty payments on sales outside the country, providing additional capital and shared commercialization support.
The partnership will co-develop and co-commercialize VIR-5500 through a sharing of expenses and revenues. Vir is eligible to earn up to $1.37 billion in additional development, regulatory, and sales milestones.
VIR stock has declined by over 21% in the last 12 months.
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