Tang Capital Management LLC Increases Stake in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Tang Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Free Report) by 166.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 320,000 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 200,000 shares during the period. Tang Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.29% of Viking Therapeutics worth $12,877,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Shelton Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $893,000. Royal Fund Management LLC boosted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 246.7% in the fourth quarter. Royal Fund Management LLC now owns 44,182 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,778,000 after acquiring an additional 31,438 shares in the last quarter. Janney Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 89.2% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted 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 acquiring an additional 15,049 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 103.1% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 42,612 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,715,000 after acquiring an additional 21,627 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

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

Viking Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VKTX traded down $1.42 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $27.25. The stock had a trading volume of 2,521,685 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,083,179. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $18.92 and a 12-month high of $81.73. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $26.09 and a 200-day moving average of $35.74. The company has a market capitalization of $3.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -27.25 and a beta of 0.75.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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). Viking Therapeutics's revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.26) EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, February 13th. They issued a "sector outperform" rating and a $102.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $105.00 to $102.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Raymond James upped their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price target (down from $95.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Monday, April 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price 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.