Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Trading Down 5.2% – Here’s Why

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) dropped 5.2% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $20.27 and last traded at $21.44. Approximately 1,838,725 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average daily volume of 3,919,780 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.62.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on VKTX. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, February 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $38.00 price target on the stock. Maxim Group decreased their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $120.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Raymond James raised their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. B. Riley reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $96.00 price target (down previously from $109.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $102.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.18.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $2.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -21.28 and a beta of 0.84. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $29.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.73.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.32) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.27) by ($0.05). During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.25) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan acquired 1,240 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were bought at an average price of $24.15 per share, with a total value of $29,946.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 1,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,946. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 4.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 9,209.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 24,392 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $589,000 after buying an additional 24,130 shares during the period. PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at about $604,000. Lighthouse Financial LLC bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at about $563,000. United Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth about $234,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 47,547 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,913,000 after purchasing an additional 2,295 shares in the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.