Short Interest in Viking Holdings Ltd (NYSE:VIK) Expands By 461.9%

Viking Holdings Ltd (NYSE:VIK) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 6,630,000 shares, an increase of 461.9% from the December 15th total of 1,180,000 shares. Currently, 4.2% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,150,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.1 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on VIK. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Viking from $39.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Viking in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $54.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Viking from $38.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Viking from $40.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded Viking from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $37.00 to $49.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $42.85.

Institutional Trading of Viking

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Viking by 50.0% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC now owns 12,960 shares of the company’s stock valued at $555,000 after buying an additional 4,320 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Viking by 113.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 121,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,227,000 after purchasing an additional 64,502 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Viking by 25.7% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,090,768 shares of the company’s stock valued at $154,931,000 after purchasing an additional 836,353 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Viking during the third quarter worth approximately $187,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Viking by 120.7% during the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 23,356 shares of the company’s stock worth $815,000 after purchasing an additional 12,771 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.84% of the company’s stock.

Viking Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:VIK traded down $0.62 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $43.07. The stock had a trading volume of 1,076,435 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,068,319. Viking has a 12-month low of $25.71 and a 12-month high of $47.62. The company’s 50 day moving average is $44.80 and its 200-day moving average is $38.58.

Viking Company Profile

Viking Holdings Ltd engages in the passenger shipping and other forms of passenger transport in North America, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through River and Ocean segments. The company also operates as a tour entrepreneur for passengers and related activities in tourism. As of December 31, 2023, it operated a fleet of 92 ships, including 81 river vessels comprising 58 Longships, 10 smaller classes based on the Longship design, 11 other river vessels, and 1 river vessel charter and the Viking Mississippi; 9 ocean ships; and 2 expedition ships.