Kintayl Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX – Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 29,273 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,142,000.
A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VKTX. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $241,458,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 41.8% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,092,840 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $55,000,000 after purchasing an additional 616,526 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP grew its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 58.7% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,085,487 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $54,807,000 after purchasing an additional 771,704 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 24.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,994,509 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $70,183,000 after purchasing an additional 385,903 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 536.3% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 992,695 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $34,923,000 after purchasing an additional 836,686 shares in the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several brokerages have issued reports on VKTX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $75.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $83.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $96.62.
Viking Therapeutics Stock Up 2.8%
NASDAQ VKTX opened at $34.17 on Wednesday. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.96 and a 52 week high of $43.15. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $35.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.21. The company has a market cap of $3.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.33 and a beta of 0.69.
Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.21) by $0.11. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.58) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.47 earnings per share for the current year.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other Viking Therapeutics news, CFO Greg Zante sold 21,217 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total transaction of $710,132.99. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 212,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,102,467.88. This represents a 9.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, COO Marianna Mancini sold 18,217 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total transaction of $609,722.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 422,760 shares in the company, valued at $14,149,777.20. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 187,951 shares of company stock worth $6,268,442. Insiders own 5.30% 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.
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