Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) Director J Matthew Singleton Sells 10,300 Shares

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) Director J Matthew Singleton sold 10,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total value of $715,850.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 9,500 shares in the company, valued at $660,250. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

J Matthew Singleton also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, August 21st, J Matthew Singleton sold 5,700 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.72, for a total value of $397,404.00.
• On Monday, August 19th, J Matthew Singleton sold 16,000 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.22, for a total value of $995,520.00.
• On Wednesday, August 14th, J Matthew Singleton sold 20,786 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.53, for a total value of $1,195,818.58.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Up 3.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ VKTX opened at $70.47 on Friday. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.28 and a 52-week high of $99.41. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $59.08 and a 200-day moving average of $63.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.81 billion, a PE ratio of -75.77 and a beta of 1.00.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.26) by $0.06. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.19) EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on VKTX shares. StockNews.com upgraded Viking Therapeutics to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $80.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, June 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $108.60.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VKTX. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 370.7% in the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 353 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. LifeSteps Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 140.8% in the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 802 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

About Viking Therapeutics

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.