Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Trading Down 1.3% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) were down 1.3% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $28.81 and last traded at $28.93. Approximately 998,564 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 3,938,253 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.32.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on VKTX shares. Scotiabank started coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $102.00 target price for the company. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, February 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $38.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, B. Riley reissued a “buy” rating and set a $96.00 target price (down previously from $109.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Viking Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.29.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average is $37.97 and its 200-day moving average is $52.88. The stock has a market cap of $3.40 billion, a PE ratio of -30.48 and a beta of 0.90.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.32) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.27) by ($0.05). During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.25) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Viking Therapeutics

In related news, COO Marianna Mancini sold 54,215 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total transaction of $2,317,691.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 374,134 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,994,228.50. This trade represents a 12.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brian Lian sold 194,490 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total transaction of $8,314,447.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,366,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,170,867.50. The trade was a 7.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 299,014 shares of company stock worth $12,782,849. 4.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,464,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 446.7% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,357,241 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $54,615,000 after buying an additional 1,108,972 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 10,775.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,004,033 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $63,565,000 after acquiring an additional 994,801 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $24,888,000. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth $18,443,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.