Clearbridge Investments LLC Makes New Investment in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Clearbridge Investments LLC bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 597,189 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,970,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the first quarter worth about $327,000. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 10,278 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $843,000 after purchasing an additional 725 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Viking Therapeutics by 44.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,785,724 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $638,429,000 after purchasing an additional 2,403,820 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $54,295,000. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 412.6% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 299,235 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $24,537,000 after buying an additional 240,863 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

Viking Therapeutics stock traded down $0.17 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $51.54. 2,100,478 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,715,071. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $8.28 and a 12-month high of $99.41. The company has a market capitalization of $5.68 billion, a P/E ratio of -55.42 and a beta of 1.03. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $56.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.87.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.27) by $0.01. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.25) EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on VKTX shares. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Maxim Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, June 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $111.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Marianna Mancini sold 281,425 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.66, for a total value of $22,136,890.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 348,508 shares in the company, valued at $27,413,639.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Viking Therapeutics news, COO Marianna Mancini sold 281,425 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.66, for a total transaction of $22,136,890.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 348,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,413,639.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Greg Zante sold 66,756 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.69, for a total value of $4,986,005.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 174,854 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,059,845.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Viking Therapeutics Company Profile

Viking Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development of novel therapies for metabolic and endocrine disorders. The company's lead drug candidate is VK2809, an orally available tissue and receptor-subtype selective agonist of the thyroid hormone receptor beta (TRß), which is in Phase IIb clinical trials to treat patients with biopsy-confirmed non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, as well as NAFLD.