Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) Shares Acquired by Bank of Montreal Can

Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) by 548.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,252 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 29,819 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in Viking Therapeutics were worth $2,173,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of VKTX. Blue Trust Inc. purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 124.6% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 84.3% during the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 553 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in 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 during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VKTX shares. B. Riley assumed coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $109.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com upgraded Viking Therapeutics to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $138.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $80.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Viking Therapeutics has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $106.75.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of VKTX stock opened at $49.88 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.56 billion, a P/E ratio of -53.63 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $61.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $59.18. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a one year low of $16.70 and a one year high of $99.41.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.22) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.24) by $0.02. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.23) EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Viking Therapeutics

In related news, Director Sarah Kathryn Rouan sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.89, for a total transaction of $889,790.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $768,455. This represents a 53.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Lawson Macartney sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.67, for a total transaction of $137,340.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 47,965 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,293,756.55. This trade represents a 4.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 371,117 shares of company stock worth $27,140,009 in the last three months. 4.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Viking Therapeutics Company 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.