Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) shot up 0.6% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $76.44 and last traded at $74.74. 1,302,271 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 5,546,540 shares. The stock had previously closed at $74.31.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VKTX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus restated a "buy" rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, Maxim Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, March 15th. One equities 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.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $112.25.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $8.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -81.10 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $69.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.01.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.27) by $0.01. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.25) earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Viking Therapeutics

In other news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 25,000 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total transaction of $701,250.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total value of $701,250.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Brian Lian sold 35,000 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.95, for a total value of $838,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,264,882 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $54,243,923.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 329,079 shares of company stock worth $8,769,653 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 4.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Viking Therapeutics

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of VKTX. Caas Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,706,000. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc acquired a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the first quarter worth $328,000. LifeSteps Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at $37,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 370.7% during the first quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 353 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gainplan LLC purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth about $246,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.