Hiddenite Capital Partners LP Takes Position in Viking Holdings Ltd. $VIK

Key Points

• Hiddenite Capital Partners initiated a new position in Viking Holdings, buying 45,000 shares valued at about $3.2 million in the fourth quarter. The stake represents roughly 0.4% of its portfolio.
• Viking’s latest quarterly results were solid, with EPS matching expectations and revenue topping estimates at $1.05 billion, up 17.5% year over year. The company also cited strong advanced bookings, supporting a positive demand outlook.
• Analysts remain broadly constructive on VIK, with several raising price targets and an average target price of $88.57. Still, sentiment is mixed, as some analysts keep hold or sell-type views and concerns remain around leverage and fuel costs.

Hiddenite Capital Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:VIK - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 45,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,213,000. Viking makes up about 0.4% of Hiddenite Capital Partners LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in VIK. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Viking during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Activest Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Viking by 19,500.0% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 392 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Viking by 316.0% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 416 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Viking by 651.8% during the fourth quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 421 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CI Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Viking by 53.1% during the third quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 551 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. 98.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on VIK. Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $86.00 price target (up from $81.00) on shares of Viking in a research note on Friday. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $95.00 price target on Viking and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Viking in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Viking from $87.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $105.00 price objective on Viking in a research report on Friday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $88.57.

Viking News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Viking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Viking’s Q1 results showed earnings in line with estimates and revenue above expectations, helped by 17.5% year-over-year growth and strong advanced bookings that suggest demand remains healthy. Article: Viking Shares Rise After First-Quarter Earnings Top Expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are also encouraged by commentary that Viking is well positioned for 2027, with booking trends and cruise demand supporting the growth outlook. Article: Viking Well Positioned for 2027 With Strong Advanced Bookings
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary have highlighted Viking’s improving fundamentals, including accelerating booking growth and potential for future rating upgrades. Article: Viking Sails to All-Time Highs—Fundamentals Signal More to Come
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho raised its price target on Viking to $75 from $69, but kept an underperform rating, signaling mixed analyst sentiment despite the higher target. Article: Viking price target raised by Mizuho
• Neutral Sentiment: Viking announced a CEO transition, naming Leah Talactac as CEO and Torstein Hagen as executive chairman, which adds leadership clarity but also brings a new management structure into focus. Article: Viking announces Leah Talactac as new CEO
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary points to rising fuel costs and the company’s heavy leverage as risks that could pressure margins and keep investors focused on profitability and debt. Article: Viking Holdings' revenue growth helps offset rising fuel costs

Viking Price Performance

Shares of VIK opened at $83.70 on Friday. Viking Holdings Ltd. has a 1 year low of $42.20 and a 1 year high of $92.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.76, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The company has a market capitalization of $37.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.57. The business has a 50-day moving average of $76.81 and a 200-day moving average of $72.03.

Viking (NYSE:VIK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.11). The company 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 166.31% and a net margin of 18.23%.The firm's revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.24) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Viking Holdings Ltd. will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Viking news, EVP Jeffrey Dash sold 46,369 shares of Viking stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.23, for a total value of $3,720,184.87. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 420,022 shares in the company, 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

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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