Vir Biotechnology selloff a 'terrific buying opportunity,' says H.C. Wainwright

H.C. Wainwright analyst Patrick Trucchio views the selloff today in shares of Vir Biotechnology (VIR) on the ACTIV-3 update as overdone. The stock in late morning trading is down 31%, or $18.15, to $39.59. Vir and partner GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) this morning provided an update on the VIR-7831 arm of the National Institutes of Health's Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines, or ACTIV Program Phase 3, clinical trial. Although VIR-7831 met initial pre-specified criteria to continue to the next phase of the ACTIV-3 trial and there were no reported safety signals, sensitivity analyses of the available data raised concerns about the magnitude of potential benefit, Trucchio tells investors in a research note. As such, the independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board has recommended that the VIR-7831 arm of the trial be closed to enrollment while the data mature. The outcome is unsurprising given that antiviral treatments are unlikely to be helpful in patients with advanced disease, and today's news is consistent with what we have been seeing with other programs, says Trucchio. The analyst sees a "terrific buying opportunity" ahead of the Phase 3 trial update evaluating VIR-7381 in early disease, specifically in the at-risk patient groups for which he believes VIR-7831 is likely to be most effective. He keeps a Buy rating on Vir shares with a $125 price target.