Nepsis Inc. Sells 158,338 Shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Nepsis Inc. decreased its holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) by 89.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 19,376 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 158,338 shares during the period. Viking Therapeutics makes up 0.1% of Nepsis Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Nepsis Inc.’s holdings in Viking Therapeutics were worth $780,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VKTX. Blue Trust Inc. bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at $26,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 124.6% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Viking Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 84.3% in the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 553 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Viking Therapeutics Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VKTX opened at $34.50 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $43.95 and a 200-day moving average of $55.39. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a one year low of $20.92 and a one year high of $99.41.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.22) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.24) by $0.02. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.23) EPS. Research analysts forecast that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on VKTX. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $74.00 price objective for the company. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com raised Viking Therapeutics to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. B. Riley initiated coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $109.00 target price for the company. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $106.75.

Insider Transactions at Viking Therapeutics

In other Viking Therapeutics news, CFO Greg Zante sold 131,687 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.61, for a total value of $10,088,541.07. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 149,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,442,929.26. This trade represents a 46.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Brian Lian sold 194,490 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total transaction of $8,314,447.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,366,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,170,867.50. This trade represents a 7.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 432,701 shares of company stock worth $23,008,730 in the last three months. Insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Viking Therapeutics Company Profile

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.