Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Reduces Position in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. $VKTX

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) by 15.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 156,653 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 27,661 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. owned about 0.14% of Viking Therapeutics worth $5,511,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of VKTX. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 41.8% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,092,840 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $55,000,000 after purchasing an additional 616,526 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 58.7% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,085,487 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $54,807,000 after purchasing an additional 771,704 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 16.1% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 954,272 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,078,000 after purchasing an additional 131,994 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 6,315.6% in the second quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 596,650 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $15,811,000 after purchasing an additional 587,350 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 10.2% in the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 578,268 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $15,197,000 after purchasing an additional 53,496 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

Key Viking Therapeutics News

Here are the key news stories impacting Viking Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Full enrollment of the Phase 3 VANQUISH?1 and VANQUISH?2 obesity trials, an IND filing for new amylin candidate VK3019, and company preparations for commercialization signal material clinical progress and longer?term revenue potential. Why Viking Therapeutics (VKTX) Is Down
• Positive Sentiment: Some sell?side and media coverage remains bullish: Piper Sandler and other analysts continue to express buy/optimistic views about the company’s pipeline and upside potential. This supports longer?term investor interest if clinical readouts are positive. Analysts Are Bullish on These Healthcare Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary highlights a trade?off: significant upside if VK2735/VK3019 succeed, but pronounced timeline and execution risk (trial timing, regulatory milestones, commercialization ramp). This frames VKTX as a binary clinical/biotech trade. Viking Therapeutics Faces Timeline Risk—But Upside Could Be Huge
• Negative Sentiment: Viking reported a much wider Q1 net loss (driven by accelerated R&D spend) and announced expansion of VK2735 into additional Phase?3 programs and commercialization work — actions that increase near?term cash burn and raise financing/valuation risk. Those financials were cited directly in recent sell?pressure headlines. Why Viking Therapeutics (VKTX) Is Down
• Negative Sentiment: HC Wainwright trimmed multiple quarterly and full?year EPS forecasts sharply, reflecting higher expected losses this year — analyst cutbacks on near?term profitability estimates amplify downward pressure despite the firm’s buy rating and $102 target. MarketBeat VKTX Analyst Notes

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research upgraded Viking Therapeutics from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Monday, April 20th. BTIG Research upgraded Viking Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Truist Financial upgraded Viking Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.50.

Viking Therapeutics Trading Down 3.8%

Shares of VKTX stock opened at $30.00 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $33.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.01. The company has a market cap of $3.48 billion, a PE ratio of -7.25 and a beta of 0.72. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $22.96 and a 12-month high of $43.15.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.37) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.01) by ($0.36). During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.41) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Viking Therapeutics news, insider Neil William Aubuchon purchased 4,475 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $33.50 per share, with a total value of $149,912.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 4,475 shares in the company, valued at approximately $149,912.50. This trade represents a ? increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

About Viking Therapeutics

Viking Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapies for metabolic and endocrine disorders. Headquartered in San Diego, California, the company’s pipeline leverages small-molecule approaches to target hormone signaling pathways implicated in conditions such as non?alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes and muscle wasting disorders.

The company’s lead programs include VK2809, a thyroid hormone receptor?beta agonist designed to reduce liver fat and improve lipid profiles in patients with NASH and dyslipidemia, and VK5211, a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) aimed at enhancing muscle mass and function in individuals with muscle wasting conditions.