YANKCOM Partnership Acquires New Shares in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new stake in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 821 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 124.6% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 66.7% in the third quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, CNB Bank acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at approximately $49,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Down 6.1 %

Shares of VKTX stock opened at $31.46 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $40.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.01. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $23.81 and a 1 year high of $99.41.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.32) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.27) by ($0.05). During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.25) earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on VKTX. B. Riley began coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $109.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Raymond James upped their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $107.08.

Insider Transactions at Viking Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Brian Lian sold 194,490 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total transaction of $8,314,447.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,366,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,170,867.50. This represents a 7.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Greg Zante sold 50,309 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total transaction of $2,150,709.75. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 165,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,064,822.25. This trade represents a 23.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 299,014 shares of company stock worth $12,782,849. Company insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

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.