#7 - Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX)
With a $6.67 billion market cap, Viking Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: VKTX) is a mid-cap company to watch in the GLP-1 space. Like Altimmune, Viking is still a clinical-stage company, meaning it doesn’t have a product available in the market.
The company’s lead candidate, VK2735, is in Phase 2 trials. In February 2024, Viking received promising data from a mid-stage trial that showed it not only rivaled but, in some cases, outperformed drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro. VK2735 is a weekly injection, but the company is also planning to test an oral tablet version.
What may make VKTX stock more attractive to investors is the $942 million it has in cash and cash equivalents. That means the company should have no issue getting VK2735 through clinical trials.
Although the company is not yet profitable, analysts have given the stock a Buy rating with a price target that forecasts an 85% gain in the next 12 months.
About Viking Therapeutics
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.
Read More - Current Price
- $66.72
- Consensus Rating
- Buy
- Ratings Breakdown
- 11 Buy Ratings, 0 Hold Ratings, 0 Sell Ratings.
- Consensus Price Target
- $109.80 (64.6% Upside)
Now that GLP-1 drugs are in the mainstream, investors could be wondering if they're too late to fatten their portfolio with weight-loss stocks. Right now, GLP-1 drugs are best known for treating obesity. But there is an increasing emphasis on having these drugs approved for other conditions.
And that's just one way the market could expand. Another way is if more prospective patients become convinced that GLP-1 drugs are safe and effective. Privately-owned Dandelion Health is building a data library that will help capture data associated with the effectiveness, benefits, and side effects of GLP-1 drugs. That data may also provide useful insights about potential label expansions for other medical conditions.
All of which means this is still a sector with the potential for massive growth. That growth can come from one or more of the stocks in this presentation. Or if you'd prefer to invest through a fund, the Tema Cardiovascular and Metabolics ETF (NASDAQ: HRTS) is a name to consider.
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