Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Stock Price Up 5.2% – Here’s What Happened

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)’s share price rose 5.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $29.53 and last traded at $29.28. Approximately 1,493,306 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 67% from the average daily volume of 4,511,725 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.82.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on VKTX. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. B. Riley reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $96.00 price objective (down previously from $109.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Maxim Group dropped their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $120.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday, February 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.29.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $34.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.15. The company has a market cap of $3.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -28.87 and a beta of 0.90.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.32) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.27) by ($0.05). During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.25) EPS. Equities analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Viking Therapeutics

In other Viking Therapeutics news, COO Marianna Mancini sold 54,215 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 374,134 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,994,228.50. This trade represents a 12.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Brian Lian sold 194,490 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 299,014 shares of company stock valued at $12,782,849. 4.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 16,955 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,074,000 after buying an additional 1,202 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. bought a new position in Viking Therapeutics during the third quarter worth $26,000. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 66.4% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 9,086 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $575,000 after purchasing an additional 3,625 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter worth $310,000. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 5,482.3% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 50,073 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,170,000 after purchasing an additional 49,176 shares during the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Viking Therapeutics

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.