Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Stock Price Up 1%

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) shares were up 1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $77.52 and last traded at $76.15. 1,360,055 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 5,514,446 shares. The stock had previously closed at $75.42.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $37.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $112.25.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $69.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.75 billion, a PE ratio of -80.91 and a beta of 1.05.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.26) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.27) by $0.01. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.25) EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total transaction of $701,250.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total value of $701,250.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brian Lian sold 269,079 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.87, for a total value of $7,230,152.73. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,184,882 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,707,779.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 370.7% in the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 353 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the period. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 125.6% during the first quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,015 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 39,321 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $732,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is 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.