Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) Director Buys $29,946.00 in Stock

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan acquired 1,240 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $24.15 per share, with a total value of $29,946.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,946. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of Viking Therapeutics stock traded up $1.77 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $25.68. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,401,250 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,901,176. The company has a market capitalization of $2.88 billion, a PE ratio of -25.68 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $29.94 and a 200 day moving average of $45.92. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $23.27 and a 12 month high of $81.86.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last announced 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 in the previous year, the company earned ($0.25) EPS. Equities analysts expect that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on VKTX shares. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Maxim Group cut their target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $120.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. 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 research report on Thursday, February 6th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, February 13th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $102.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $102.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.18.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth about $1,715,000. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 92.1% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 131,348 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $8,316,000 after purchasing an additional 62,956 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its position in Viking Therapeutics by 109.1% in the third quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 34,023 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,154,000 after purchasing an additional 17,754 shares in the last quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. grew its position in Viking Therapeutics by 122.4% in the fourth quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. now owns 80,602 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,243,000 after purchasing an additional 44,365 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 103.1% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 42,612 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,715,000 after acquiring an additional 21,627 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

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.