Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. $VKTX

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) by 84.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,169 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 87,377 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Viking Therapeutics were worth $425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 6,911 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $167,000 after purchasing an additional 484 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 0.5% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 538,636 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $13,008,000 after buying an additional 2,652 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 205.6% during the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 17,875 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $430,000 after buying an additional 12,026 shares during the period. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the first quarter worth approximately $242,000. Finally, Quarry LP grew its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 1,621.4% in the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,205 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,135 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

Viking Therapeutics stock opened at $37.18 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $36.29 and its 200-day moving average is $32.01. The company has a market cap of $4.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.54 and a beta of 0.65. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.92 and a 12 month high of $43.55.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.81) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.67) by ($0.14). The company’s revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.22) earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viking Therapeutics

In related news, COO Marianna Mancini sold 6,185 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total transaction of $216,475.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 382,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,386,345. The trade was a 1.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Greg Zante sold 6,185 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total transaction of $216,475.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 173,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,075,720. This trade represents a 3.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 111,359 shares of company stock valued at $3,932,155 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on VKTX shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. B. Riley upgraded Viking Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Monday, September 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Viking Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.14.

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.