International Assets Investment Management LLC Purchases 9,308 Shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Free Report) by 50.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,584 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 9,308 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC's holdings in Viking Therapeutics were worth $666,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 64.8% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,363 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 536 shares during the period. FIL Ltd grew its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 116.8% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,203 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 648 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. increased its position in Viking Therapeutics by 222,100.0% in the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 2,222 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 2,221 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 170.2% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC boosted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 1,242.9% during the 1st quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC now owns 2,350 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 2,175 shares during the period. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan bought 1,240 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $24.15 per share, for a total transaction of $29,946.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,240 shares in the company, valued at $29,946. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 4.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Up 4.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:VKTX traded up $1.08 during trading on Thursday, reaching $28.17. 5,362,771 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,060,544. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.76. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $18.92 and a 1-year high of $81.73. The firm has a market cap of $3.16 billion, a P/E ratio of -24.50 and a beta of 0.65.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.41) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.31) by ($0.10). The company's quarterly revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.26) EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $30.00 price target on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Viking Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $75.00 price target (down from $95.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered 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 note on Thursday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Viking Therapeutics presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.