Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) have received an average recommendation of “Buy” from the ten research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $112.25.

VKTX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Maxim Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $110.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Viking Therapeutics to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $32.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th.

Viking Therapeutics Trading Down 4.0 %

Shares of VKTX opened at $76.43 on Thursday. Viking Therapeutics has a 12 month low of $8.28 and a 12 month high of $99.41. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $70.77 and its 200-day moving average is $36.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.43 billion, a PE ratio of -82.18 and a beta of 1.05.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.27) by $0.01. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.25) EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Viking Therapeutics

In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total value of $701,250.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total value of $701,250.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brian Lian sold 269,079 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.87, for a total transaction of $7,230,152.73. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,184,882 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,707,779.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 370.7% during the first quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 353 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the first quarter worth about $37,000. Spire Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the first quarter worth about $61,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 125.6% during the first quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,015 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares in the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.