Handelsbanken Fonder AB Has $865,000 Holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB cut its position in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Free Report) by 80.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,800 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 147,600 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Viking Therapeutics were worth $865,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VKTX. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $1,715,000. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 58.0% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 14,911 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $600,000 after buying an additional 5,475 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 363.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,885 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 1,478 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $429,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 96,702 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,891,000 after acquiring an additional 14,873 shares during the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

Viking Therapeutics stock traded up $0.88 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $26.96. The company had a trading volume of 2,982,221 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,060,304. The firm's fifty day moving average is $26.46 and its 200-day moving average is $31.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.03 billion, a P/E ratio of -26.96 and a beta of 0.65. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $18.92 and a fifty-two week high of $81.73.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last released 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). During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.26) earnings per share. The business's revenue 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 Activity

In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan purchased 1,240 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $24.15 per share, with a total value of $29,946.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,240 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,946. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 4.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on VKTX. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Viking Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $105.00 to $102.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $75.00 price target (down previously from $95.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $30.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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.