Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Price Target Cut to $75.00 by Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Key Points

• Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. have reduced the price target for Viking Therapeutics from $80.00 to $75.00, maintaining an "overweight" rating which indicates a potential upside of 127.00% from the stock's recent close.
• Despite the downgrade, other analysts remain optimistic; HC Wainwright has set a buy rating with a target price of $102.00, while Morgan Stanley increased their target to $102.00, indicating varying levels of confidence in the stock.
• Viking Therapeutics' stock has experienced a decline of 2.6% and currently has a consensus target price of $85.62, reflecting a mixed outlook among analysts.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) had its price target cut by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $80.00 to $75.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the biotechnology company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price points to a potential upside of 127.00% from the stock's previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on VKTX. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Viking Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $85.62.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Down 2.6%

Viking Therapeutics stock opened at $33.04 on Friday. Viking Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $18.92 and a 12-month high of $81.73. The company has a market capitalization of $3.71 billion, a PE ratio of -15.62 and a beta of 0.64. The firm's fifty day moving average is $28.68 and its 200 day moving average is $28.63.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.81) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.67) by ($0.14). During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.22) EPS. The company's revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Viking Therapeutics will post -1.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 121.5% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 29,721 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $718,000 after acquiring an additional 16,302 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Management Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth about $241,000. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,367,000. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 77.7% in the 2nd quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 63,546 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,684,000 after buying an additional 27,795 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 118.5% in the 2nd quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 52,000 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,378,000 after buying an additional 28,200 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.03% of the company's stock.

About Viking Therapeutics

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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