ING Groep NV Takes Position in Viking Holdings Ltd. $VIK

ING Groep NV purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:VIK) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 384,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,894,000. ING Groep NV owned 0.09% of Viking as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VIK. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Viking by 92.0% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,440 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 690 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp purchased a new position in shares of Viking during the 2nd quarter worth $215,000. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System acquired a new stake in shares of Viking during the 2nd quarter worth about $526,000. US Bancorp DE increased its position in shares of Viking by 43.2% during the 2nd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 15,017 shares of the company’s stock worth $800,000 after purchasing an additional 4,529 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Viking by 36.0% in the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 953,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,807,000 after buying an additional 252,384 shares during the period. 98.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Viking

Here are the key news stories impacting Viking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley upgrade/coverage lift — analyst Stephen Grambling raised Viking’s price target to $75 (Overweight), highlighting resilience in wealthier demographic segments and supporting buy-side interest. Morgan Stanley Highlights Viking Holdings (VIK) for Resilience in Wealthier Demographic Segments
• Positive Sentiment: Brand expansion in China — Viking opened its first Brand Experience Center in Beijing, which can boost direct bookings, brand awareness and long-term demand in the important China outbound market. Viking Opens First Brand Experience Center in Beijing
• Positive Sentiment: Route/network enhancement — Henderson has been added as a permanent stop on Viking river cruises, expanding itinerary depth and potential per-passenger revenue on certain U.S. itineraries. Henderson becomes permanent stop on Viking River Cruise
• Positive Sentiment: ESG recognition — the Viking Sky won the Dover Cruise SEA Award for sustainability, reinforcing the company’s environmental credentials which can matter to institutional and long-term retail buyers. Viking Sky Wins Dover Cruise SEA Award for Sustainability
• Neutral Sentiment: Unrelated media coverage using “Viking” name — several archaeology/history pieces about Viking-era finds (mass graves, legendary burials) are trending; these are editorially unrelated to Viking Holdings but can create short-term name-search noise. Viking Age Mass Grave in UK Reveals “Giant” with Skull Surgery
• Neutral Sentiment: More popular-press Viking archaeology stories (legendary burial reporting) — notable for PR noise but not company fundamentals. A Legendary Viking Burial Could Be Real After All. The Evidence Is Hiding In Plain Sight.
• Neutral Sentiment: Science/space story about the historical “Viking” Mars missions — topical interest but irrelevant to Viking Holdings’ business. Did the Viking missions discover life on Mars 50 years ago? These scientists think so

Viking Price Performance

Viking stock opened at $77.53 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.68. Viking Holdings Ltd. has a 52-week low of $31.79 and a 52-week high of $78.59. The firm has a market cap of $34.36 billion, a PE ratio of 36.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 2.07. The company’s 50 day moving average is $71.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $64.60.

Viking (NYSE:VIK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 19th. The company reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.99 billion. Viking had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 716.92%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 19.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.89 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Viking Holdings Ltd. will post 1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Viking from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 8th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Viking from $69.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Viking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $60.00 to $80.00 in a report on Monday, December 15th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Viking from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Viking from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Viking presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.00.

Viking 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.