Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Shares Up 1.9% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) shares increased by 1.9% during mid-day trading, reaching a last price of $27.88.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Viking Therapeutics, with price targets ranging from $38.00 to $125.00, and a consensus average rating of "Buy".
• The company recently reported a quarterly EPS of ($0.58), missing analysts' expectations, with predictions suggesting an EPS of ($1.56) for the fiscal year.

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) shot up 1.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $27.90 and last traded at $27.88. 3,475,452 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 28% from the average session volume of 4,831,869 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.37.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. BTIG Research reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Monday, September 22nd. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Monday. Raymond James Financial lowered their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $31.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $86.42.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -18.22 and a beta of 0.64. The business's fifty day moving average price is $29.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.94.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.58) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.44) by ($0.14). Viking Therapeutics's revenue was up NaN% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.20) earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 9,209.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 24,392 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $589,000 after purchasing an additional 24,130 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in Viking Therapeutics by 64.8% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,363 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 536 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. increased its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 222,100.0% in the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 2,222 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 2,221 shares during the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at about $958,000. Finally, Principia Wealth Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 10.5% during the 1st quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 6,478 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $150,000 after acquiring an additional 616 shares during the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.

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