Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) Stock Holdings Lessened by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets cut its holdings in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) by 66.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 86,712 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 170,112 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Viking Therapeutics were worth $5,490,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 0.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,619,430 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,052,176,000 after acquiring an additional 79,149 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 55.4% in the 3rd quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 1,269,152 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $80,350,000 after purchasing an additional 452,344 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Viking Therapeutics by 10,775.6% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,004,033 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $63,565,000 after purchasing an additional 994,801 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 930,370 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $58,902,000 after buying an additional 143,675 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Viking Therapeutics by 6.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 715,597 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $45,304,000 after buying an additional 44,122 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Down 2.4 %

Shares of VKTX stock opened at $50.26 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $62.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $59.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -54.04 and a beta of 0.88. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $14.02 and a fifty-two week high of $99.41.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.22) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.24) by $0.02. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.23) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Viking Therapeutics to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, September 12th. B. Riley began coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $109.00 target price on the stock. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $106.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Viking Therapeutics news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 11,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.89, for a total transaction of $889,790.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 9,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $768,455. The trade was a 53.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director J Matthew Singleton sold 10,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total transaction of $715,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 9,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $660,250. The trade was a 52.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 371,117 shares of company stock worth $27,140,009. Corporate insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

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.