Investors Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Key Points

• Unusual options activity: Traders purchased 48,911 call options on Viking Therapeutics, roughly 259% above the typical volume of 13,631 contracts.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive: Viking has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $99.67, despite some target-price reductions.
• VK2735 offers potential upside but faces risks: Maintenance-study results showed strong weight-loss retention with less-frequent dosing, while investors still await larger Phase 3 results. Proposed $200 million stock and $200 million convertible-note offerings could fund development but may dilute shareholders and increase financing obligations.

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders purchased 48,911 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 259% compared to the typical volume of 13,631 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Lake Street Capital assumed coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. They set a "buy" rating and a $89.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $75.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Oppenheimer set a $120.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Viking Therapeutics from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $99.67.

Viking Therapeutics News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Viking Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: VK2735 maintenance data showed that patients retained up to 97% of prior weight loss after switching from weekly injections to every-other-week dosing, and up to 90% with monthly dosing. The treatment also demonstrated approximately 22% placebo-adjusted weight loss after 33 weeks of weekly treatment, with gastrointestinal side effects reportedly similar to placebo. Less-frequent dosing could improve convenience and adherence in the crowded GLP-1 market. Viking Therapeutics Announces Positive Topline Results from Maintenance Study
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and investors view the maintenance results as a potential commercial differentiator from Eli Lilly’s and Novo Nordisk’s established obesity therapies. Viking is advancing injectable VK2735 through Phase 3 trials and expects to begin Phase 3 testing of an oral formulation in the fourth quarter of 2026. Viking’s Obesity Edge May Be Staying Power, Not Weight Loss
• Neutral Sentiment: Viking announced proposed offerings of $200 million in common stock and $200 million of convertible senior notes due 2032. The proceeds should help fund clinical development and future commercialization, but the stock offering may dilute existing shareholders and the convertible debt adds financing obligations. Viking Therapeutics Announces Proposed Offerings
• Negative Sentiment: The encouraging maintenance study was relatively small and lasted only 12 weeks after the dosing switch. Investors still need to see results from larger 78-week Phase 3 trials, expected in 2027, while monthly-dosing competitors could reduce VK2735’s eventual advantage.

Insider Transactions at Viking Therapeutics

In related news, CFO Greg Zante sold 21,217 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total value of $710,132.99. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 212,204 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,102,467.88. This represents a 9.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Brian Lian sold 148,517 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.32, for a total value of $4,948,586.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,572,441 shares in the company, valued at $85,713,734.12. This represents a 5.46% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 187,951 shares of company stock worth $6,268,442. Corporate insiders own 5.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Timothy G. Youngquist 2020 Irrevocable Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 141.6% in the second quarter. Timothy G. Youngquist 2020 Irrevocable Trust now owns 271,849 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $10,605,000 after acquiring an additional 159,349 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Viking Therapeutics during the second quarter worth about $3,334,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $241,458,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 18.0% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 542,516 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $17,653,000 after purchasing an additional 82,941 shares during the period. Finally, Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,783,000. 76.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Up 2.0%

NASDAQ VKTX opened at $41.65 on Thursday. Viking Therapeutics has a 52-week low of $24.78 and a 52-week high of $43.15. The business's 50-day moving average price is $33.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.54. The firm has a market cap of $4.86 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.94 and a beta of 0.69.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.10) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.21) by $0.11. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.58) EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics will post -4.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Viking Therapeutics Company Profile

Viking Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies for metabolic and endocrine disorders. The company's research programs target conditions including obesity, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), dyslipidemia and other disorders involving hormone regulation and metabolism.

Viking's lead program is VK2735, an investigational dual agonist of the glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) receptors being developed in injectable and oral formulations for obesity and related metabolic conditions.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.