Castleark Management LLC Sells 30,011 Shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Castleark Management LLC cut its stake in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) by 85.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,978 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 30,011 shares during the quarter. Castleark Management LLC’s holdings in Viking Therapeutics were worth $200,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 75.9% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 716 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares during the period. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. FIL Ltd raised its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 116.8% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,203 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 648 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 170.2% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 851 shares during the period. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at $63,000. 76.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Viking Therapeutics

In other news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan acquired 1,240 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $24.15 per share, with a total value of $29,946.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 insiders.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

Viking Therapeutics stock opened at $27.25 on Thursday. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a one year low of $18.92 and a one year high of $81.73. The business’s fifty day moving average is $26.02 and its 200 day moving average is $35.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.06 billion, a PE ratio of -27.25 and a beta of 0.75.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last posted its 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 last year, the company posted ($0.26) EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on VKTX shares. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Maxim Group cut their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $120.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. B. Riley reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $96.00 target price (down from $109.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Scotiabank began coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $102.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.15.

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.