Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report)'s share price traded up 3.4% on Friday . The company traded as high as $30.88 and last traded at $30.51. 1,142,230 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 3,931,930 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.50.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. They set a "sector outperform" rating and a $102.00 target price for the company. Maxim Group reduced their target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $120.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. B. Riley reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $96.00 price objective (down from $109.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $97.29.
Read Our Latest Report on VKTX
Viking Therapeutics Stock Performance
The company's 50-day moving average price is $36.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.34. The stock has a market cap of $3.60 billion, a PE ratio of -32.29 and a beta of 0.90.
Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.32) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.27) by ($0.05). During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.25) EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Insider Activity
In related news, CEO Brian Lian sold 194,490 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total value of $8,314,447.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,366,570 shares in the company, valued at $101,170,867.50. This trade represents a 7.59 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Greg Zante sold 50,309 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total transaction of $2,150,709.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 165,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,064,822.25. The trade was a 23.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 299,014 shares of company stock worth $12,782,849. 4.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics
Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter worth about $56,000. Finally, FIL Ltd grew its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 116.8% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,203 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 648 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the company's stock.
Viking Therapeutics Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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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