AQR Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Free Report) by 15.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 537,239 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 73,710 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.48% of Viking Therapeutics worth $21,516,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC grew its position in Viking Therapeutics by 0.6% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,880,713 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $75,704,000 after acquiring an additional 17,046 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 446.7% in 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 buying an additional 1,108,972 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Viking Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,464,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,115,068 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $44,870,000 after acquiring an additional 81,183 shares during the period. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan purchased 1,240 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The shares were bought at an average price of $24.15 per share, for a total transaction of $29,946.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,240 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,946. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 4.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

VKTX traded down $0.16 on Friday, hitting $27.69. The company had a trading volume of 962,834 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,438,721. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $18.92 and a 52-week high of $81.73. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a P/E ratio of -27.69 and a beta of 0.75.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.41) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.31) by ($0.10). The firm's quarterly revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.26) earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on VKTX. Maxim Group dropped their target price 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. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $105.00 to $102.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $75.00 price objective (down from $95.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Monday, April 28th. Citigroup initiated coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, February 7th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $38.00 target price for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $87.15.

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.