WINTON GROUP Ltd Buys New Position in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. $VKTX

WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new position in Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 90,546 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,532,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Ballast Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the first quarter worth about $33,000. Quattro Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at $53,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Viking Therapeutics Trading Down 1.7%

VKTX stock opened at $32.13 on Friday. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $22.96 and a 12 month high of $43.15. The company has a market cap of $3.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.89 and a beta of 0.69. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $35.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $33.57.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.10) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.21) by $0.11. The company’s revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.58) EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viking Therapeutics

In other news, COO Marianna Mancini sold 18,217 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total transaction of $609,722.99. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 422,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,149,777.20. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Greg Zante sold 21,217 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total transaction of $710,132.99. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 212,204 shares in the company, valued at $7,102,467.88. The trade was a 9.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 187,951 shares of company stock valued at $6,268,442 over the last quarter. 5.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Friday, July 17th. Lake Street Capital initiated coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $89.00 target price on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded Viking Therapeutics from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $75.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Truist Financial initiated coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $83.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $96.62.

Viking Therapeutics Profile

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.