Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Stock Price Up 2%

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report)'s share price traded up 2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $79.28 and last traded at $78.86. 695,202 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 6,382,853 shares. The stock had previously closed at $77.35.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Viking Therapeutics to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Raymond James boosted their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $37.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $32.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $112.25.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Up 1.4 %

The company has a market capitalization of $7.88 billion, a P/E ratio of -85.72 and a beta of 1.05. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $53.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.22.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.25) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.25). During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.26) EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total transaction of $701,250.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Greg Zante sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.90, for a total transaction of $268,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 180,730 shares in the company, valued at $3,235,067. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total value of $701,250.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 374,079 shares of company stock worth $9,729,653. Corporate insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 63.6% during the third quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 560,180 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $6,201,000 after purchasing an additional 217,827 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 924.4% during the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 82,099 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $909,000 after acquiring an additional 74,085 shares during the period. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new position in Viking Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth $148,000. Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 73.1% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 359,585 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $3,981,000 after acquiring an additional 151,826 shares during the period. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 48.5% during the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 89,741 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $993,000 after acquiring an additional 29,319 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the company's stock.

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.