Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) Shares Sold by GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC

GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) by 31.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,449 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 650 shares during the period. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC’s holdings in Viking Therapeutics were worth $58,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VKTX. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 10,775.6% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,004,033 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $63,565,000 after purchasing an additional 994,801 shares during the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd boosted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 55.4% during the 3rd quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 1,269,152 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $80,350,000 after purchasing an additional 452,344 shares during the period. Fiera Capital Corp bought a new position in Viking Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth $18,443,000. Eventide Asset Management LLC increased its position in Viking Therapeutics by 79.1% in the third quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC now owns 452,969 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $28,677,000 after buying an additional 200,000 shares during the period. Finally, Nepsis Inc. bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at $11,251,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Viking Therapeutics

In other news, CFO Greg Zante sold 50,309 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total transaction of $2,150,709.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 165,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,064,822.25. This represents a 23.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Brian Lian sold 194,490 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total value of $8,314,447.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,366,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,170,867.50. This trade represents a 7.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 301,014 shares of company stock valued at $12,920,189 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Viking Therapeutics Trading Down 3.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ VKTX opened at $31.52 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $41.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.45. The company has a market capitalization of $3.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -33.89 and a beta of 0.90. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a twelve month low of $22.69 and a twelve month high of $99.41.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on VKTX shares. B. Riley initiated coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $109.00 price objective on the stock. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $74.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $102.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, January 17th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Viking Therapeutics to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $106.75.

Viking Therapeutics 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.