Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Shares Down 1.4% - Here's What Happened

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) shares were down 1.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $48.40 and last traded at $48.91. Approximately 1,346,447 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 4,532,650 shares. The stock had previously closed at $49.58.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on VKTX shares. Raymond James lifted their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. StockNews.com upgraded Viking Therapeutics to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $138.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $80.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $109.80.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Down 2.1 %

The company has a market cap of $5.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -52.59 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $64.60 and a 200-day moving average of $61.19.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.22) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.24) by $0.02. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.23) EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Lawson Macartney sold 2,000 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.67, for a total value of $137,340.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 47,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,293,756.55. This trade represents a 4.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Greg Zante sold 131,687 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.61, for a total transaction of $10,088,541.07. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 149,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,442,929.26. The trade was a 46.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 377,817 shares of company stock worth $27,607,313 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 4.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oak Ridge Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at approximately $837,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 43.5% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 102,324 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $6,478,000 after buying an additional 31,011 shares during the period. Nvwm LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth $999,000. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC raised its position in Viking Therapeutics by 88.0% in the third quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 36,666 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,322,000 after purchasing an additional 17,159 shares during the period. Finally, Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Viking Therapeutics by 34.1% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 38,143 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,415,000 after purchasing an additional 9,699 shares during the period. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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