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

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) has earned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the ten analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $112.25.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $32.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Raymond James upped their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $37.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Maxim Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, March 15th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Greg Zante sold 66,756 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.69, for a total value of $4,986,005.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 174,854 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,059,845.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, COO Marianna Mancini sold 281,425 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.66, for a total value of $22,136,890.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 348,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,413,639.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Greg Zante sold 66,756 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.69, for a total value of $4,986,005.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 174,854 shares in the company, valued at $13,059,845.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 642,260 shares of company stock valued at $35,054,299. Company insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VKTX. Perpetual Ltd purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $78,586,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 59.6% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,202,228 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $24,379,000 after purchasing an additional 822,156 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at about $12,341,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 88.3% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,119,885 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $20,841,000 after buying an additional 525,296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 194.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 765,320 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $8,472,000 after buying an additional 505,578 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of VKTX opened at $78.21 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $73.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $38.37. Viking Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $8.28 and a fifty-two week high of $99.41.

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

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.