Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Buys New Position in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 58,236 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,775,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Viking Therapeutics as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV bought a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC bought a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $93,000. Corton Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $133,000. Finally, JFG Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $223,000. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Marianna Mancini sold 281,425 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.66, for a total value of $22,136,890.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 348,508 shares in the company, valued at $27,413,639.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Viking Therapeutics news, CFO Greg Zante sold 66,756 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.69, for a total transaction of $4,986,005.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 174,854 shares in the company, valued at $13,059,845.26. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Marianna Mancini sold 281,425 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.66, for a total value of $22,136,890.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 348,508 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,413,639.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VKTX traded down $1.14 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $54.18. The company had a trading volume of 564,510 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,928,000. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $63.20 and a two-hundred day moving average of $51.96. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $8.28 and a 12-month high of $99.41.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.27) by $0.01. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.25) earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VKTX. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, June 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $105.00 price target for the company. BTIG Research upped their price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, March 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $110.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has 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 a consensus price target of $111.56.

Viking Therapeutics 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.