Shares of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (VIR) tumbled 5.12% in after-hours trading on Wednesday following the release of its second-quarter financial results that fell short of analyst expectations. The biotechnology company, which focuses on treating and preventing serious infectious diseases, reported wider losses and a significant drop in revenue compared to the same period last year.
Vir Biotechnology posted a basic loss per share of $0.80, missing the analyst consensus estimate of $0.76 by 5.68%. While this represents a 21.57% improvement from the $1.02 loss per share reported in the same quarter last year, it still disappointed investors hoping for a narrower loss. The company's quarterly sales also came in below expectations, reporting just $1.21 million compared to the analyst estimate of $2.38 million. This marks a substantial 60.52% decrease from the $3.08 million in sales reported in the same period last year.
Despite the disappointing financial results, Vir Biotechnology did report some positive operational news earlier in the day. The company announced the successful initiation of all trials in its Eclipse Registrational Program for Chronic Hepatitis Delta. However, this development seems to have been overshadowed by the earnings miss, as investors focused on the company's financial performance in the after-hours trading session.