Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Now Covered by Wolfe Research

Analysts at Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) in a note issued to investors on Thursday. The brokerage set a “peer perform” rating on the biotechnology company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on VKTX. BTIG Research raised shares of Viking Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $99.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research upgraded Viking Therapeutics from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $87.80.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Up 1.5%

VKTX traded up $0.50 on Thursday, hitting $33.70. The company had a trading volume of 143,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,003,256. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $32.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $32.88. Viking Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $18.92 and a 12-month high of $43.15. The company has a market cap of $3.89 billion, a PE ratio of -10.59 and a beta of 0.75.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.38) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.89) by ($0.49). During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.32) earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Viking Therapeutics news, CEO Brian Lian sold 233,409 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.96, for a total transaction of $7,693,160.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,499,291 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $82,376,631.36. The trade was a 8.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Matthew W. Foehr sold 16,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.11, for a total value of $561,760.00. Following the sale, the director owned 132,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,635,783.96. The trade was a 10.81% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 364,731 shares of company stock valued at $12,053,627. 4.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of VKTX. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 41.8% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,092,840 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $55,000,000 after purchasing an additional 616,526 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 58.7% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,085,487 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $54,807,000 after buying an additional 771,704 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 24.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,994,509 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $70,183,000 after buying an additional 385,903 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $46,846,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 536.3% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 992,695 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $34,923,000 after acquiring an additional 836,686 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

About Viking Therapeutics

Viking Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapies for metabolic and endocrine disorders. Headquartered in San Diego, California, the company’s pipeline leverages small-molecule approaches to target hormone signaling pathways implicated in conditions such as non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes and muscle wasting disorders.

The company’s lead programs include VK2809, a thyroid hormone receptor‐beta agonist designed to reduce liver fat and improve lipid profiles in patients with NASH and dyslipidemia, and VK5211, a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) aimed at enhancing muscle mass and function in individuals with muscle wasting conditions.