Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Shares Down 3.5% After Insider Selling

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) shares fell 3.5% on Monday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $73.69 and last traded at $74.27. 1,478,583 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 5,420,153 shares. The stock had previously closed at $76.97.

Specifically, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 348,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,413,639.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total transaction of $701,250.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 642,260 shares of company stock valued at $35,054,299. Corporate insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VKTX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $110.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $37.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Maxim Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, BTIG Research boosted their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Viking Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $112.25.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $8.78 billion, a PE ratio of -85.60 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $73.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.86.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.27) by $0.01. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.25) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Viking Therapeutics

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV acquired a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 370.7% in the first quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 353 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at $61,000. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

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.