MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. Takes Position in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 10,797 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $429,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 75.9% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 716 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. FIL Ltd grew its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 116.8% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,203 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 648 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 170.2% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 851 shares during the period. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $63,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Viking Therapeutics news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan bought 1,240 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $24.15 per share, with a total value of $29,946.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,240 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,946. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 4.10% of the company's stock.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

Viking Therapeutics stock traded down $1.18 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $26.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,842,888 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,089,125. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $25.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $33.72. The company has a market cap of $3.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -26.98 and a beta of 0.75. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $18.92 and a 1-year high of $81.73.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VKTX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, February 7th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. Maxim Group decreased their price objective 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 initiated coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. They issued a "sector outperform" rating and a $102.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Viking Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $87.15.

Viking Therapeutics 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.