Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a report released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $106.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. B. Riley Financial raised Viking Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $105.00 target price on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $87.80.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

NASDAQ VKTX opened at $31.03 on Wednesday. Viking Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $18.92 and a 1-year high of $43.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.76 and a beta of 0.75. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $32.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.48.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.38) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.89) by ($0.49). During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.32) earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics will post -1.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Viking Therapeutics

In other news, Director Matthew W. Foehr sold 16,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.11, for a total transaction of $561,760.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 132,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,635,783.96. This represents a 10.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Marianna Mancini sold 57,661 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.98, for a total value of $1,901,659.78. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 409,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,495,086.20. This represents a 12.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 364,731 shares of company stock valued at $12,053,627 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 58.4% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 955 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc bought a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 58.0% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 945 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

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.