Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Director Matthew Foehr Sells 16,000 Shares

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) Director Matthew Foehr sold 16,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.11, for a total transaction of $561,760.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 132,036 shares in the company, valued at $4,635,783.96. This trade represents a 10.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Performance

Viking Therapeutics stock traded down $3.28 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $32.14. 8,255,722 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,999,261. The firm has a market cap of $3.63 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.16 and a beta of 0.71. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $18.92 and a 12-month high of $43.55. The business has a fifty day moving average of $36.43 and a 200 day moving average of $32.36.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.81) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.67) by ($0.14). Viking Therapeutics’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.22) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Viking Therapeutics

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at $12,201,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Viking Therapeutics during the second quarter worth about $46,846,000. Wealth Management Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $241,000. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at $1,367,000. Finally, Marex Group plc acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $983,000. 76.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on VKTX. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $106.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $105.00 price target on Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. B. Riley raised shares of Viking Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Viking Therapeutics from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.14.

About Viking Therapeutics

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.