GSA Capital Partners LLP Acquires New Holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. $VKTX

GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 25,988 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,014,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ballast Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the first quarter worth about $33,000. Quattro Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in Viking Therapeutics by 169.2% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,077 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 677 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 1,400 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $50,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on VKTX shares. Truist Financial started coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $83.00 price target for the company. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday, May 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 target price on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $96.62.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viking Therapeutics

In other Viking Therapeutics news, CFO Greg Zante sold 21,217 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total transaction of $710,132.99. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 212,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,102,467.88. This trade represents a 9.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, COO Marianna Mancini sold 18,217 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total transaction of $609,722.99. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 422,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,149,777.20. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 187,951 shares of company stock worth $6,268,442 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

Viking Therapeutics Trading Up 1.3%

Viking Therapeutics stock opened at $33.63 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $34.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.03. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a twelve month low of $22.96 and a twelve month high of $43.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.92 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.22 and a beta of 0.69.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.21) by $0.11. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.58) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Viking Therapeutics Company Profile

Viking Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapies for metabolic and endocrine disorders. Headquartered in San Diego, California, the company’s pipeline leverages small-molecule approaches to target hormone signaling pathways implicated in conditions such as non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes and muscle wasting disorders.

The company’s lead programs include VK2809, a thyroid hormone receptor‐beta agonist designed to reduce liver fat and improve lipid profiles in patients with NASH and dyslipidemia, and VK5211, a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) aimed at enhancing muscle mass and function in individuals with muscle wasting conditions.