Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) Receives $97.88 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $97.8750.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on VKTX shares. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Zacks Research cut shares of Viking Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Truist Financial started coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $83.00 target price on the stock.

Viking Therapeutics Trading Up 2.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:VKTX opened at $34.26 on Thursday. Viking Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $22.96 and a 1 year high of $43.15. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $34.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $32.99. The firm has a market cap of $4.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.35 and a beta of 0.69.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.10) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.21) by $0.11. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.58) EPS. The company’s revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Viking Therapeutics will post -4.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Viking Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Brian Lian sold 148,517 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.32, for a total value of $4,948,586.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,572,441 shares in the company, valued at $85,713,734.12. This trade represents a 5.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, COO Marianna Mancini sold 18,217 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total value of $609,722.99. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 422,760 shares in the company, valued at $14,149,777.20. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 187,951 shares of company stock valued at $6,268,442. 5.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of VKTX. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 58.0% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 945 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the period. Ballast Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Quattro Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 169.2% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,077 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 677 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 1,400 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Viking Therapeutics Company Profile

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.