Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Viking Therapeutics Call Options (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Stock traders purchased 31,516 call options on the company. This is an increase of 87% compared to the average volume of 16,878 call options.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of Viking Therapeutics stock opened at $24.15 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $30.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.22. Viking Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $23.27 and a 1 year high of $82.00. The company has a market capitalization of $2.71 billion, a P/E ratio of -24.15 and a beta of 0.90.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.32) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.27) by ($0.05). During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.25) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Viking Therapeutics will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on VKTX shares. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $102.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Citigroup initiated coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, February 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. B. Riley restated a “buy” rating and set a $96.00 target price (down from $109.00) on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Maxim Group decreased their price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $120.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Scotiabank began coverage on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $102.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.18.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Marianna Mancini sold 54,215 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total transaction of $2,317,691.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 374,134 shares in the company, valued at $15,994,228.50. This trade represents a 12.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Greg Zante sold 50,309 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total transaction of $2,150,709.75. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 165,259 shares in the company, valued at $7,064,822.25. This trade represents a 23.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 299,014 shares of company stock valued at $12,782,849. Company insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 75.9% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 716 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares in the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. FIL Ltd increased its position in Viking Therapeutics by 116.8% during the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,203 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 648 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 170.2% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 851 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $63,000. 76.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.