What is William Blair’s Forecast for VKTX FY2024 Earnings?

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) – Analysts at William Blair lowered their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, October 23rd. William Blair analyst A. Hsieh now anticipates that the biotechnology company will post earnings of ($0.96) per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of ($0.95). The consensus estimate for Viking Therapeutics’ current full-year earnings is ($0.98) per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Viking Therapeutics’ Q4 2024 earnings at ($0.27) EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at ($0.28) EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at ($0.28) EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at ($0.30) EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at ($0.29) EPS, FY2025 earnings at ($1.15) EPS and FY2026 earnings at ($1.19) EPS.

VKTX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $138.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Raymond James lifted their target price on Viking Therapeutics from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $80.00 price objective on the stock. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Viking Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $108.60.

Viking Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of Viking Therapeutics stock opened at $74.52 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $8.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -80.13 and a beta of 1.00. Viking Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $9.25 and a 1 year high of $99.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $63.83 and its 200 day moving average is $61.64.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.22) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.24) by $0.02. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.23) earnings per share.

Insider Transactions at Viking Therapeutics

In other Viking Therapeutics news, CEO Brian Lian sold 112,870 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.80, for a total transaction of $7,426,846.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,354,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $154,954,196.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director J Matthew Singleton sold 5,700 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.72, for a total transaction of $397,404.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $662,340. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brian Lian sold 112,870 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.80, for a total transaction of $7,426,846.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,354,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $154,954,196.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 525,473 shares of company stock worth $37,088,158 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Oak Ridge Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at $837,000. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. increased its stake in Viking Therapeutics by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 13,650 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $864,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 10.7% during the third quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 21,405 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,355,000 after acquiring an additional 2,062 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 5,482.3% in the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 50,073 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,170,000 after acquiring an additional 49,176 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter worth about $310,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.