BMO Capital Markets Upgrades Viking (NYSE:VIK) to "Strong-Buy"

Key Points

• BMO Capital Markets upgraded Viking to “strong-buy”, adding to an already bullish analyst backdrop. Across coverage, the stock now has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $97.76.
• Viking shares were trading down 1.8% on Tuesday at $98.17, near their 52-week high of $105.76. The company has a market cap of $43.75 billion and a beta of 1.48.
• In its latest earnings report, Viking met EPS expectations at -$0.11 and beat revenue estimates with $1.05 billion in sales, up 17.5% year over year. Analysts expect the company to earn 3.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Viking (NYSE:VIK - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at BMO Capital Markets to a "strong-buy" rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

VIK has been the subject of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $86.00 price target (up from $81.00) on shares of Viking in a report on Friday, May 15th. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of Viking in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Viking from $87.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Viking in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Viking from $84.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $97.76.

Viking Trading Down 1.8%

VIK opened at $98.17 on Tuesday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $91.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $80.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.27, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Viking has a 1-year low of $55.09 and a 1-year high of $105.76.

Viking (NYSE:VIK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.11). The business had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. Viking had a return on equity of 149.40% and a net margin of 18.00%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.24) EPS. Analysts expect that Viking will post 3.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viking

In other news, EVP Jeffrey Dash sold 46,369 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.23, for a total transaction of $3,720,184.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 420,022 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $33,698,365.06. The trade was a 9.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard Marnell sold 11,287 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.85, for a total transaction of $1,047,997.95. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 117,050 shares in the company, valued at $10,868,092.50. The trade was a 8.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 63,935 shares of company stock valued at $5,360,351.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Viking by 92.0% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,440 shares of the company's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Viking during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $303,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. purchased a new position in Viking in the 2nd quarter valued at $922,000. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Viking by 34,748.5% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,812,120 shares of the company's stock worth $96,568,000 after acquiring an additional 1,806,920 shares during the period. Finally, Nebula Research & Development LLC lifted its stake in shares of Viking by 275.0% in the 2nd quarter. Nebula Research & Development LLC now owns 30,257 shares of the company's stock worth $1,612,000 after acquiring an additional 22,188 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.84% of the company's stock.

About Viking

Viking Holdings Ltd engages in the passenger shipping and other forms of passenger transport in North America, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through River and Ocean segments. The company also operates as a tour entrepreneur for passengers and related activities in tourism. As of December 31, 2023, it operated a fleet of 92 ships, including 81 river vessels comprising 58 Longships, 10 smaller classes based on the Longship design, 11 other river vessels, and 1 river vessel charter and the Viking Mississippi; 9 ocean ships; and 2 expedition ships.

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