Blair William & Co. IL Boosts Holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. $VKTX

Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) by 7.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 355,926 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,919 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL owned approximately 0.31% of Viking Therapeutics worth $9,354,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 58.4% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 955 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the period. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the second quarter worth $29,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the third quarter worth $30,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Avion Wealth raised its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 1,157.0% in the third quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 1,521 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on VKTX. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $106.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $99.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Zacks Research raised Viking Therapeutics from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, BTIG Research upgraded shares of Viking Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.80.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

NASDAQ:VKTX opened at $33.61 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.88 billion, a PE ratio of -10.57 and a beta of 0.75. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $31.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $32.28. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.92 and a 12 month high of $43.15.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last posted its quarterly 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 business posted ($0.32) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Viking Therapeutics

In other Viking Therapeutics news, COO Marianna Mancini sold 57,661 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.98, for a total transaction of $1,901,659.78. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 409,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,495,086.20. This trade represents a 12.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brian Lian sold 233,409 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.96, for a total value of $7,693,160.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,499,291 shares in the company, valued at $82,376,631.36. This trade represents a 8.54% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 364,731 shares of company stock valued at $12,053,627 in the last ninety days. 4.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.