NewEdge Wealth LLC Invests $711,000 in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. $VKTX

NewEdge Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 21,856 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $711,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 41.8% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,092,840 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $55,000,000 after purchasing an additional 616,526 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 58.7% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,085,487 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $54,807,000 after purchasing an additional 771,704 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 24.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,994,509 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $70,183,000 after purchasing an additional 385,903 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 536.3% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 992,695 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $34,923,000 after purchasing an additional 836,686 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 16.1% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 954,272 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,078,000 after buying an additional 131,994 shares during the period. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VKTX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Lake Street Capital initiated coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $89.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research cut Viking Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Truist Financial began coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $83.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price objective on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.00.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VKTX opened at $34.87 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $33.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.94. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a one year low of $22.96 and a one year high of $43.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.05 billion, a PE ratio of -8.42 and a beta of 0.66.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.37) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.01) by ($0.36). During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.41) earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Viking Therapeutics Company Profile

Viking Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapies for metabolic and endocrine disorders. Headquartered in San Diego, California, the company’s pipeline leverages small-molecule approaches to target hormone signaling pathways implicated in conditions such as non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes and muscle wasting disorders.

The company’s lead programs include VK2809, a thyroid hormone receptor‐beta agonist designed to reduce liver fat and improve lipid profiles in patients with NASH and dyslipidemia, and VK5211, a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) aimed at enhancing muscle mass and function in individuals with muscle wasting conditions.