Jacob Funds, a mutual fund company, released its first-quarter 2026 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. The Fund started the year optimistically, expecting fiscal and monetary policies to boost an economy showing mixed signals. However, rapid AI developments and a Middle East conflict caused one of the worst quarters since COVID. Market turbulence led to widespread tech sell-offs, blurring lines between at-risk and AI-benefiting firms. AI prompts critical long-term questions for the tech industry, with emerging agentic AI promising a new wave of innovation similar to the late 1990s dot-com boom. Recent market weakness allowed the Fund to invest in promising beneficiaries at better prices, creating an opportunity to pivot into names with potential for rapid growth and profits as agentic AI moves from niche to broad adoption. Please review the Fund’s top five holdings to gain insights into their key selections for 2026.
In its first-quarter 2026 investor letter, Jacob Funds highlighted Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) as a new addition to the Jacob Small Cap Growth Fund. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company specializing in developing therapies to treat and prevent serious infectious diseases. On April 9, 2026, Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) closed at $9.83 per share. One-month return of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) was 6.16%, and its shares gained 77.76% over the past 52 weeks. Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) has a market capitalization of $1.57 billion.
Jacob Funds stated the following regarding Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) in its Q1 2026 investor letter:
“The Jacob Small Cap Growth Fund also added a position in Circle Internet Group, as well as Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR). Vir Biotechnology is a leader in the exciting field of immunotherapy, and specifically a therapy known as Bispecific T-Cell engagers, or BiTEs. BiTEs hold a tremendous amount of promise in oncology, as the therapy helps recruit a patient’s innate immune system to kill cancer cells, as well as for infectious diseases, like hepatitis delta and HIV. Vir’s approach is to mask their T-Cell engagers with a proprietary technology exclusively licensed from Sanofi, so that the therapy is only activated when it encounters diseased cells, which should increase the effectiveness of the treatment while minimizing off target toxicity, a major problem encountered by other BiTEs in development. Vir recently completed a large collaboration deal with Astellas following the release of successful Phase 1 data for its drug in prostate cancer, which will give them enough cash to fund clinical trials for the next several years.”
Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) is not on our list of 40 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds Heading Into 2026. According to our database, 30 hedge fund portfolios held Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) at the end of the fourth quarter, up from 25 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the risk and potential of Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIR) and that has 10,000% upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q1 2026 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
