OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC Buys New Stake in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX)

OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,260 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $206,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its position in Viking Therapeutics by 84.3% in the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 553 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of Viking Therapeutics stock opened at $52.59 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $63.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $60.38. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $11.55 and a fifty-two week high of $99.41. The firm has a market cap of $5.86 billion, a P/E ratio of -56.55 and a beta of 1.00.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.22) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.24) by $0.02. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.23) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on VKTX. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $138.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, September 12th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $80.00 target price on the stock. Finally, B. Riley assumed coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $109.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $109.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Brian Lian sold 216,130 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.83, for a total value of $15,308,487.90. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,304,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $163,257,979.41. This trade represents a 8.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 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 three months, insiders have sold 371,117 shares of company stock valued at $27,140,009. Company 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.