For the mid-sized biotech company Viking Therapeutics, the past year has been challenging. The company has made limited clinical progress, and a significant data release failed to gain full market recognition, resulting in stock performance lagging behind the S&P 500. Given this situation, market attention naturally turns to whether Viking Therapeutics can achieve a turnaround this year.
Many Wall Street analysts remain optimistic. According to Yahoo Finance, the company’s average target stock price is $93.39, implying a potential upside of approximately 175% from current levels. However, achieving such a significant increase is not easy and largely depends on the progress of the company’s core product development.
Viking Therapeutics’ primary hope rests on its core candidate drug, VK2735, an investigational GLP-1-based drug for weight management. Its subcutaneous injection formulation is undergoing a 78-week Phase III clinical trial. The results of this trial are considered the most significant event for the company in recent years. Strong data would undoubtedly provide a substantial boost to the stock price. However, patient enrollment for this trial is expected to be completed by the end of 2025, and full results are unlikely to be available until 2027. Interim analysis data might be seen in 2026, but this remains uncertain.
Simultaneously, the company is conducting a Phase I maintenance therapy study with a small group of patients who have already successfully lost weight using VK2735. This study is testing three administration regimens: daily oral, weekly oral, and monthly injection. This research is significant because maintaining weight loss is a major clinical challenge, with many users of GLP-1-based drugs facing weight regain. If VK2735 can be proven to effectively help maintain weight loss through different formulations or dosing intervals, it would become a key highlight for the drug.
The maintenance therapy study alone is unlikely to support a 175% surge in Viking Therapeutics’ stock price in the short term. Phase I clinical trials typically focus on evaluating safety and tolerability, and even positive results generally have a limited impact on stock price. The critical full Phase III data may not be available until 2027. Therefore, without major positive catalysts, achieving the Wall Street-expected gains will be challenging.
For investors, the more fundamental question might be whether this stock is worth holding for the long term, regardless of its performance in 2026. Viking Therapeutics indeed carries high risks, as do most clinical-stage biotech companies. However, it also possesses some long-term attractions: the weight-loss market continues to grow rapidly, with demand not yet fully met; VK2735 has already shown promise in mid-stage studies. The company is expanding its pipeline through the development of an oral version and plans for later-stage studies in diabetic patient populations. The ongoing maintenance therapy study also reflects its long-term vision and strategy to differentiate its product.
In summary, the future stock price trajectory of Viking Therapeutics will largely depend on its clinical progress over the coming years. If it can achieve strong results, the stock has significant upside potential.
