Investors Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX)

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock traders acquired 53,247 call options on the company. This is an increase of 168% compared to the typical daily volume of 19,834 call options.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VKTX traded up $10.00 on Thursday, hitting $70.39. 8,412,950 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,312,941. Viking Therapeutics has a 52 week low of $8.28 and a 52 week high of $99.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -70.01 and a beta of 1.00. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $62.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $61.66.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.26) by $0.06. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.19) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics will post -1 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Viking Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $80.00 target price on the stock. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday. Raymond James increased 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. StockNews.com raised Viking Therapeutics to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $138.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Viking Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $108.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viking Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Brian Lian sold 216,130 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,304,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $163,257,979.41. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Viking Therapeutics news, Director J Matthew Singleton sold 20,786 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.53, for a total value of $1,195,818.58. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,500 shares in the company, valued at $546,535. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brian Lian sold 216,130 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.83, for a total transaction of $15,308,487.90. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,304,927 shares in the company, valued at $163,257,979.41. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 516,671 shares of company stock valued at $33,810,813. 4.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 124.6% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its stake 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 buying an additional 253 shares during the period. 76.03% of the stock is 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.