Melqart Asset Management UK Ltd Decreases Stake in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Melqart Asset Management UK Ltd trimmed its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Free Report) by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 94,107 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 20,840 shares during the quarter. Melqart Asset Management UK Ltd owned approximately 0.08% of Viking Therapeutics worth $5,958,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. IHT Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the third quarter worth approximately $845,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics during the third quarter worth $308,000. Hilltop Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 45.3% during the third quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 9,777 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $619,000 after buying an additional 3,047 shares during the last quarter. Cinctive Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 81.4% during the third quarter. Cinctive Capital Management LP now owns 65,080 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $4,120,000 after buying an additional 29,204 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics during the third quarter worth $2,897,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of VKTX traded up $0.98 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $51.24. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,623,532 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,497,021. The stock has a market cap of $5.71 billion, a PE ratio of -54.57 and a beta of 0.88. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $14.82 and a 12-month high of $99.41. The company's 50 day moving average is $61.91 and its 200 day moving average is $59.23.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.22) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.24) by $0.02. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.23) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Viking Therapeutics

In other Viking Therapeutics news, Director J Matthew Singleton sold 10,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total transaction of $715,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 9,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $660,250. This trade represents a 52.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.89, for a total value of $889,790.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $768,455. The trade was a 53.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 371,117 shares of company stock valued at $27,140,009 in the last three months. 4.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on VKTX shares. StockNews.com raised Viking Therapeutics to a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. B. Riley began coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $109.00 price objective on the stock. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $80.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Viking Therapeutics presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $106.75.

Viking Therapeutics 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.