Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Shares Gap Up - Still a Buy?

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $41.49, but opened at $44.18. Viking Therapeutics shares last traded at $42.61, with a volume of 2,035,766 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $138.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $80.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $74.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $106.75.

Viking Therapeutics Trading Up 1.8 %

The company has a market capitalization of $4.71 billion, a P/E ratio of -45.43 and a beta of 0.88. The business's fifty day moving average price is $58.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $57.95.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.22) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.24) by $0.02. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.23) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.97 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viking Therapeutics

In other Viking Therapeutics news, CFO Greg Zante sold 131,687 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.61, for a total transaction of $10,088,541.07. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 149,366 shares in the company, valued at $11,442,929.26. This represents a 46.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 11,000 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.89, for a total value of $889,790.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 9,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $768,455. This represents a 53.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 144,687 shares of company stock worth $11,115,671 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 4.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 124.6% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 84.3% in the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 553 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.