Greg Zante Sells 21,217 Shares of Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Stock

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) CFO Greg Zante sold 21,217 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total value of $710,132.99. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 212,204 shares in the company, valued at $7,102,467.88. The trade was a 9.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Down 1.0%

VKTX opened at $33.11 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.84 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.11 and a beta of 0.66. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $34.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.98. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.96 and a 52-week high of $43.15.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.10) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.21) by $0.11. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.58) earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 21.6% in the 2nd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 43,400 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,693,000 after buying an additional 7,700 shares during the period. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the second quarter worth about $341,000. Ballast Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the first quarter worth about $33,000. PVG Asset Management Corp raised its position in Viking Therapeutics by 69.7% during the first quarter. PVG Asset Management Corp now owns 19,853 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $588,000 after acquiring an additional 8,154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in Viking Therapeutics by 32.6% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 14,020 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $456,000 after acquiring an additional 3,447 shares in the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on VKTX shares. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Zacks Research cut Viking Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Viking Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.88.

Key Viking Therapeutics News

Here are the key news stories impacting Viking Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Viking beat second-quarter loss expectations, reporting an adjusted loss of $1.10 per share versus the $1.21 consensus estimate. The result provides some support, although the loss was wider than the $0.58 per-share loss recorded a year earlier. VKTX Q2 earnings beat estimates
• Positive Sentiment: The Phase 3 VANQUISH 1 and 2 studies of injectable VK2735 for obesity are fully enrolled and advancing. Viking expects to begin a Phase 3 study of oral VK2735 in the fourth quarter of 2026 and release maintenance-dosing data in the third quarter, creating potential catalysts for the stock. Viking Q2 corporate update
• Positive Sentiment: Canaccord Genuity raised its VKTX price target to $114 from $107 and maintained a “buy” rating. The bullish view reflects expectations for substantial value if VK2735 succeeds in the competitive obesity market.
• Positive Sentiment: Viking ended the quarter with approximately $502 million in cash, while its Phase 1 study of amylin agonist VK3019 is underway. The cash balance gives the company additional funding for clinical development. Viking second-quarter results
• Neutral Sentiment: The CEO, CFO and COO sold shares to cover tax withholding obligations related to vested equity awards. The transactions reduced their holdings, but the stated purpose makes them less indicative of a negative view of VKTX’s prospects. Viking insider transactions
• Negative Sentiment: Net loss widened to $128.1 million as research and development spending surged to support the expanding pipeline. Viking has essentially no revenue, so investors remain dependent on future clinical success rather than current operating performance. Viking Q2 net loss
• Negative Sentiment: The company launched a $500 million shelf-registration program to fund VK2735’s development and potential commercialization. While it improves financial flexibility, any future share issuance could dilute existing shareholders. VKTX shelf registration

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.