Viking (NYSE:VIK) Trading Down 5.9% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Viking shares fell 5.9% to approximately $99.90 in Friday’s mid-day trading, with volume slightly below its average.
• Analysts remain broadly optimistic, giving Viking a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $106.22; Citigroup and Goldman Sachs recently raised their targets to $113 and $120, respectively.
• Viking reported 17.5% year-over-year revenue growth to $1.05 billion in its latest quarter, while insiders sold 17,566 shares worth about $1.64 million over the past quarter.

Viking Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:VIK - Get Free Report) shares traded down 5.9% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $100.04 and last traded at $99.90. Approximately 2,519,302 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 8% from the average daily volume of 2,737,270 shares. The stock had previously closed at $106.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on VIK. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Viking from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Viking from $101.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Viking from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Viking from $88.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Viking from $108.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Viking currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $106.22.

Viking Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $44.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.86, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.27, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $99.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $85.77.

Viking (NYSE:VIK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported ($0.11) earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.11). The company had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Viking had a net margin of 18.00% and a return on equity of 149.40%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.24) EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Viking Holdings Ltd. will post 3.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Richard Marnell sold 6,120 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.30, for a total transaction of $577,116.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 110,930 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,460,699. The trade was a 5.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 17,566 shares of company stock worth $1,640,166 over the last quarter.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of VIK. Prosperity Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Viking during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,114,000. Hiddenite Capital Partners LP acquired a new stake in Viking during the 4th quarter valued at $3,213,000. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Viking by 39.2% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 956,147 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,278,000 after purchasing an additional 269,274 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of Viking by 19.8% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 581,948 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,762,000 after purchasing an additional 96,166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Viking in the fourth quarter worth $1,151,000. 98.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Viking

Viking Holdings Ltd engages in the passenger shipping and other forms of passenger transport in North America, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through River and Ocean segments. The company also operates as a tour entrepreneur for passengers and related activities in tourism. As of December 31, 2023, it operated a fleet of 92 ships, including 81 river vessels comprising 58 Longships, 10 smaller classes based on the Longship design, 11 other river vessels, and 1 river vessel charter and the Viking Mississippi; 9 ocean ships; and 2 expedition ships.

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