Viking (NYSE:VIK) Upgraded by Sanford C. Bernstein to Strong-Buy Rating

Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Viking (NYSE:VIK) to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Viking in a report on Friday, May 15th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Viking from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Loop Capital began coverage on shares of Viking in a research note on Monday. They set a “buy” rating and a $108.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $86.00 price target (up from $81.00) on shares of Viking in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $95.00 price target on shares of Viking and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $96.38.

Viking Stock Performance

NYSE:VIK opened at $90.06 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.48, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.59. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $81.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.92. Viking has a twelve month low of $46.06 and a twelve month high of $93.70.

Viking (NYSE:VIK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported ($0.11) earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.11). The business had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Viking had a net margin of 18.00% and a return on equity of 149.40%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.24) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Viking will post 3.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Viking

In related news, EVP Jeffrey Dash sold 46,369 shares of Viking stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.23, for a total transaction of $3,720,184.87. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 420,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,698,365.06. The trade was a 9.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viking

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VIK. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Viking during the 4th quarter worth $372,297,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Viking by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 14,048,357 shares of the company’s stock worth $873,246,000 after purchasing an additional 3,471,244 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Viking by 316.8% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,426,297 shares of the company’s stock valued at $316,082,000 after purchasing an additional 3,364,265 shares in the last quarter. Dream Peak Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Viking in the 4th quarter valued at about $223,744,000. Finally, State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Viking by 34,748.5% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,812,120 shares of the company’s stock valued at $96,568,000 after purchasing an additional 1,806,920 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.84% of the company’s stock.

Viking Company 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.