Bank of America Corp DE Reduces Holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Bank of America Corp DE lowered its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Free Report) by 14.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 361,551 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 61,282 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned about 0.32% of Viking Therapeutics worth $14,549,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VKTX. Janney Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 89.2% during the 4th quarter. Janney Capital Management LLC now owns 6,542 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $263,000 after acquiring an additional 3,085 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 177.0% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 23,552 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $948,000 after purchasing an additional 15,049 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 103.1% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 42,612 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,715,000 after buying an additional 21,627 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at $475,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 54.7% in the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 10,085 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $406,000 after buying an additional 3,566 shares during the period. 76.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Down 5.0%

Shares of VKTX stock opened at $27.25 on Thursday. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $18.92 and a 52 week high of $81.73. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $26.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $35.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.06 billion, a PE ratio of -27.25 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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.31) by ($0.10). During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.26) earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viking Therapeutics

In other news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan purchased 1,240 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $24.15 per share, for a total transaction of $29,946.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,240 shares in the company, valued at $29,946. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 4.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Maxim Group dropped their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $120.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $75.00 price target (down from $95.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Raymond James raised their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Scotiabank initiated coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. They set a "sector outperform" rating and a $102.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised Viking Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Viking Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $87.15.

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.

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