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Short Interest in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) Expands By 88,996.6%

Viking Therapeutics logo with Medical background

Key Points

  • Short interest in Viking Therapeutics surged by 88,996.6% in July, totaling 28.6 million shares as of July 15, indicating a potential shift in investor sentiment.
  • CEO Brian Lian and CFO Greg Zante both sold shares on July 3rd, with Lian's sale valued at over $747,000 and Zante's at approximately $118,000, reducing their ownership stakes in the company.
  • Viking Therapeutics shares traded up 0.2% to $32.65 with a market cap of $3.67 billion, although the company reported a loss of ($0.58) earnings per share for the last quarter, missing estimates.
  • MarketBeat previews the top five stocks to own by September 1st.

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 28,600,000 shares, agrowthof88,996.6% from the June 30th total of 32,100 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,670,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 7.8 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,670,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 7.8 days.

Insider Transactions at Viking Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Brian Lian sold 26,889 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.80, for a total transaction of $747,514.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,388,014 shares of the company's stock, valued at $66,386,789.20. This represents a 1.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Greg Zante sold 4,266 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.76, for a total transaction of $118,424.16. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 168,660 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,682,001.60. The trade was a 2.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 35,421 shares of company stock valued at $984,405. 4.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 121.5% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 29,721 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $718,000 after acquiring an additional 16,302 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 9,209.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 24,392 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $589,000 after buying an additional 24,130 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at about $429,000. LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 18.2% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 96,702 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,891,000 after buying an additional 14,873 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the first quarter valued at about $220,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VKTX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James Financial decreased their price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note 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 reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $102.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price objective (down previously from $95.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $86.92.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on VKTX

Viking Therapeutics Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ VKTX traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $32.65. The company had a trading volume of 2,575,665 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,096,066. The business's 50-day moving average is $28.95 and its 200-day moving average is $28.57. The stock has a market cap of $3.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -21.26 and a beta of 0.62. Viking Therapeutics has a 52 week low of $18.92 and a 52 week high of $81.73.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.58) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.44) by ($0.14). During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.20) EPS. Viking Therapeutics's revenue was up NaN% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Viking Therapeutics will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current year.

About Viking Therapeutics

(Get Free Report)

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.

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This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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