Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Stock Price Down 0.5% – Here’s What Happened

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)’s share price fell 0.5% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $22.52 and last traded at $23.00. 680,963 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 4,001,895 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.11.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on VKTX shares. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Maxim Group reduced their price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $120.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $102.00 price objective on the stock. B. Riley reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $96.00 target price (down previously from $109.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.75.

Viking Therapeutics Trading Up 0.1 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -23.14 and a beta of 0.84. The company’s fifty day moving average is $27.36 and its 200-day moving average is $42.67.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.32) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.27) by ($0.05). During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.25) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan acquired 1,240 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $24.15 per share, with a total value of $29,946.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,946. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,715,438 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $672,629,000 after purchasing an additional 96,008 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,880,713 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $75,704,000 after buying an additional 17,046 shares in the last quarter. Braidwell LP grew its position in Viking Therapeutics by 27.9% in the fourth quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 1,479,666 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $59,542,000 after acquiring an additional 322,689 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Viking Therapeutics by 228.5% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,479,596 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $59,540,000 after acquiring an additional 1,029,125 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 446.7% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,357,241 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $54,615,000 after acquiring an additional 1,108,972 shares in the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.