Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Purchases 1,108,972 Shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Free Report) by 446.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,357,241 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,108,972 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned 1.22% of Viking Therapeutics worth $54,615,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,715,000. Stifel Financial Corp raised its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 92.1% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 131,348 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $8,316,000 after buying an additional 62,956 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 109.1% in the third quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 34,023 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $2,154,000 after buying an additional 17,754 shares during the last quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. boosted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 122.4% during the fourth quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. now owns 80,602 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $3,243,000 after buying an additional 44,365 shares during the period. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 103.1% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 42,612 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,715,000 after buying an additional 21,627 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.03% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan purchased 1,240 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $24.15 per share, with a total value of $29,946.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,946. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 4.70% of the company's stock.

Viking Therapeutics Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of VKTX traded down $0.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $19.92. 1,348,966 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,939,723. The company has a market capitalization of $2.24 billion, a P/E ratio of -19.89 and a beta of 0.84. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $18.95 and a 52 week high of $81.86. The company's 50 day moving average is $28.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.21.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.32) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.27) by ($0.05). During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.25) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on VKTX. Maxim Group lowered their target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $120.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup began coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, February 7th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $38.00 target price for the company. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Scotiabank started coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. They issued a "sector outperform" rating and a $102.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Viking Therapeutics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $89.75.

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.