Oak Ridge Investments LLC Acquires New Stake in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Oak Ridge Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 13,222 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $837,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 13,650 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $864,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Viking Therapeutics by 10.7% during the third quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 21,405 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,355,000 after buying an additional 2,062 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 5,482.3% in the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 50,073 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,170,000 after buying an additional 49,176 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at approximately $310,000. Finally, PFG Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the third quarter worth approximately $230,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 11,000 shares of the company's 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 owns 9,500 shares in the company, valued at $768,455. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 11,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $768,455. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director J Matthew Singleton sold 20,786 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.53, for a total transaction of $1,195,818.58. Following the transaction, the director now owns 9,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $546,535. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 525,473 shares of company stock worth $37,088,158. Company insiders own 4.70% of the company's stock.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Up 0.5 %

VKTX stock traded up $0.34 on Friday, reaching $72.88. 3,171,048 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,700,090. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $64.44 and a 200-day moving average of $61.86. The firm has a market cap of $8.12 billion, a PE ratio of -78.36 and a beta of 1.00. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a twelve month low of $9.34 and a twelve month high of $99.41.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.23) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $80.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $138.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Viking Therapeutics to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $108.60.

Viking Therapeutics Company 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.