Viking Medicals, Inc. (VKTX) shares rose more than 4% on Thursday after analysts defended the company against a bearish describe from Citron Research. Earlier this week, Citron published a negative report on licensor Ligand Pharmaceuticals Amalgamate (LGND), saying that Viking Therapeutics accounts for over half of Ligand’s milestones. Despite the significant quantity of its valuation attributable to Viking, Ligand has been repurchasing its own stock and selling its Viking Therapeutics holdings. Citron also piercing out that Viking Therapeutics insiders have been net sellers over the past year.
Raymond James analysts whooped the report “ridiculous” and maintained its Outperform rating and price target of $43.00 per share on Viking Therapeutics, which sketches a massive premium to the current market price. At the same time, STAT’s Adam Feuerstein tweeted that Citron’s brief thesis relies on Viking “blowing up,” adding that if Viking pans out, short sellers would be “toast.”
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From a complicated standpoint, the stock is trading down more than 65% from its 52-week highs made back in mid-September. The have bottomed out at its then-S2 support level in mid-December before rebounding to a pivot point near $8.76. The relative tenaciousness index (RSI) remains somewhat oversold at 45.74, while the moving average convergence divergence (MACD) remains in a bullish uptrend. These needles suggest that the stock could have more room to run higher.
Traders should watch for a breakout toward control trendline and 200-day moving average resistance near $10.00. If the stock breaks out from these flats, traders could see a move higher toward R2 resistance at $13.45 over the coming weeks. If the stock breaks down from trendline upkeep, traders could see a move to fresh lows near S1 support at $5.86. Traders will be keeping an eye on VK2809 and other clinical programs as good-naturedly as potential acquisition possibilities.
The author holds no position in the stock(s) mentioned except through passively managed ratio funds.