William Blair Issues Pessimistic Estimate for VKTX Earnings

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Free Report) - William Blair cut their Q2 2025 EPS estimates for Viking Therapeutics in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, April 23rd. William Blair analyst A. Hsieh now expects that the biotechnology company will post earnings of ($0.45) per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of ($0.36). The consensus estimate for Viking Therapeutics' current full-year earnings is ($1.56) per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Viking Therapeutics' Q3 2025 earnings at ($0.49) EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at ($0.52) EPS, FY2025 earnings at ($1.87) EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at ($0.54) EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at ($0.55) EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at ($0.56) EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at ($0.57) EPS, FY2026 earnings at ($2.22) EPS and FY2027 earnings at ($2.79) EPS.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.31) by ($0.10). During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.26) earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis.

VKTX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, February 7th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $38.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Viking Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Maxim Group reduced their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $120.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $87.15.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

NASDAQ VKTX traded up $0.93 on Monday, hitting $28.87. 5,222,441 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,537,645. Viking Therapeutics has a twelve month low of $18.92 and a twelve month high of $81.86. The company's 50 day moving average price is $26.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a P/E ratio of -28.87 and a beta of 0.84.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VKTX. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth about $1,715,000. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 122.4% during the fourth quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. now owns 80,602 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $3,243,000 after purchasing an additional 44,365 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 103.1% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 42,612 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,715,000 after buying an additional 21,627 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $475,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $528,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Viking Therapeutics

In other news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan purchased 1,240 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $24.15 per share, for a total transaction of $29,946.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,240 shares in the company, valued at $29,946. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 4.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.