Viking Holdings Ltd. $VIK Shares Bought by Empowered Funds LLC

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC increased its Viking Holdings stake by 2,599.9% in the first quarter, acquiring 103,970 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 107,969 shares valued at approximately $7.9 million.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.84% of Viking’s outstanding stock. Several other firms also increased or initiated positions, including Stephens Investment Management and The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company.
• Viking reported first-quarter revenue of $1.05 billion, up 17.5% year over year, while matching the consensus EPS estimate of a $0.11 loss. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $106.22.

Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Viking Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:VIK - Free Report) by 2,599.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 107,969 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 103,970 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Viking were worth $7,934,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VIK. Hiddenite Capital Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Viking in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,213,000. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Viking by 39.2% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 956,147 shares of the company's stock worth $68,278,000 after buying an additional 269,274 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in Viking by 19.8% during the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 581,948 shares of the company's stock worth $42,762,000 after buying an additional 96,166 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors acquired a new position in Viking in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,151,000. Finally, Virtus Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Viking in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,071,000. 98.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Viking

In related news, EVP Richard Marnell sold 6,120 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.30, for a total value of $577,116.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 110,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,460,699. This represents a 5.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have sold 17,566 shares of company stock valued at $1,640,166 in the last three months.

Viking Trading Down 8.0%

Viking stock opened at $97.61 on Friday. Viking Holdings Ltd. has a 12 month low of $56.06 and a 12 month high of $110.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.27. The stock has a market cap of $43.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.50. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $100.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.86.

Viking (NYSE:VIK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.11). Viking had a return on equity of 149.40% and a net margin of 18.00%.The business had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.24) earnings per share. Viking's quarterly revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Viking Holdings Ltd. will post 3.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Viking from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Barclays lifted their target price on Viking from $88.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Viking from $108.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $125.00 price target on Viking in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Viking from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Viking presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $106.22.

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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