Parallel Advisors LLC Grows Position in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) by 64.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,363 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 536 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC’s holdings in Viking Therapeutics were worth $33,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 75.9% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 716 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd grew its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 116.8% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,203 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 648 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 170.2% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 851 shares during the period. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth $63,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 79.4% during the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 1,938 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of VKTX opened at $27.57 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.10 billion, a PE ratio of -27.57 and a beta of 0.65. The company’s fifty day moving average is $25.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.58. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $18.92 and a fifty-two week high of $81.73.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.41) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.31) by ($0.10). During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.26) EPS. The business’s revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $105.00 to $102.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Viking Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective (down from $95.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, February 13th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $102.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Viking Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $87.15.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan bought 1,240 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $24.15 per share, with a total value of $29,946.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,946. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 4.10% 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.