19,154 Shares in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. $VKTX Acquired by Visionary Wealth Advisors

Visionary Wealth Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 19,154 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $747,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the second quarter worth $241,458,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted 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 during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 58.7% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,085,487 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $54,807,000 after purchasing an additional 771,704 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 6,315.6% in the second quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 596,650 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $15,811,000 after purchasing an additional 587,350 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Viking Therapeutics

In related news, COO Marianna Mancini sold 18,217 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total transaction of $609,722.99. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 422,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,149,777.20. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Greg Zante sold 21,217 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total value of $710,132.99. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 212,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,102,467.88. This trade represents a 9.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 187,951 shares of company stock valued at $6,268,442 in the last quarter. 5.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Down 1.9%

NASDAQ:VKTX opened at $33.23 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.13 and a beta of 0.69. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.96 and a 52 week high of $43.15. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $35.36 and a 200 day moving average of $33.18.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.21) by $0.11. Viking Therapeutics’s revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.58) earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.47 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VKTX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Lake Street Capital initiated coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $89.00 price target on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $83.00 target price on the stock. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 target price on shares of 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, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.62.

Viking Therapeutics 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.