Viking Therapeutics Stock (VKTX) Plummets 40% Today - Here’s Why

Biotech bloodbath hits Viking Therapeutics as shares crater 40% in single session.

Clinical Catastrophe

The nosedive follows disappointing trial data that shattered investor confidence. Pipeline prospects dimmed overnight as the market delivered its brutal verdict.

Market Mayhem

Traders stampeded for exits, wiping out nearly half the company's valuation before lunch. Volume exploded to 500% of daily average—pure panic selling with no bottom in sight.

Biotech Roulette

Another reminder that drug development burns cash faster than crypto degens leverage long. When trials fail, shareholders learn the hard way that FDA approvals aren't guaranteed—just ask the 40% bagholders today.

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Viking Therapeutics noted that the study met its primary and secondary endpoints, with patients experiencing significant weight loss compared to placebo. This came in at a mean of up to 10.9%. Up to 80% of patients in the trial experienced weight loss of greater than 10%, compared with 5% for placebo. 20% of patients discontinued the study due to an adverse event, compared to 13% for placebo.

Brian Lian, Ph.D., CEO of Viking Therapeutics, said, “The progressive nature of the weight loss curves suggests the potential for further improvement with longer dosing periods. The experimental maintenance arm of this study provides an encouraging signal that supports our belief that transitioning patients from higher doses, injectable or oral, to low oral doses represents a promising approach to weight maintenance therapy.”

Viking Therapeutics Stock Movement Today

While the VK2735 clinical trial met its primary endpoint, it doesn’t appear to have impressed investors. Shares of VKTX stock were down 37.18% in pre-market trading on Tuesday, following a 5.15% loss yesterday. The shares have also increased 4.6% year-to-date, but fell 36.36% in the past 12 months.

Today’s drop came with strong trading of Viking Therapeutics stock. More than 3.3 million shares were traded this morning, closing in on a three-month daily average of about 4.29 million shares.

Is Viking Therapeutics Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold?

Turning to Wall Street, the analysts’ consensus rating for Viking Therapeutics is Strong Buy, based on 14 Buy and two Hold ratings over the past three months. With that comes an average VKTX stock price target of $88.71, representing a potential 110.76% upside for the shares.