Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Shares Down 1.7% - Time to Sell?

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) shares dropped 1.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $21.23 and last traded at $23.20. Approximately 2,047,518 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 49% from the average daily volume of 4,012,832 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.60.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VKTX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, February 7th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $38.00 price target for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $89.75.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Down 0.9 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.66 billion, a PE ratio of -23.72 and a beta of 0.84. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $26.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.70.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Viking Therapeutics

In other Viking Therapeutics news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan bought 1,240 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $24.15 per share, for a total transaction of $29,946.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,240 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,946. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 4.70% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VKTX. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Viking Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $51,464,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 446.7% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,357,241 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $54,615,000 after purchasing an additional 1,108,972 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 228.5% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,479,596 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $59,540,000 after acquiring an additional 1,029,125 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Viking Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at $24,888,000. Finally, Man Group plc grew its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 3,373.4% during the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 448,732 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $18,057,000 after buying an additional 435,813 shares in the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.