UBS Just Initiated Coverage of Viking Therapeutics With a Buy Rating and a $94 Target. Here's the Bull Case.

UBS initiated coverage of Viking Therapeutics (VKTX) with a Buy rating and a $94 price target, a level that implies roughly 250% upside from current prices.

The bull case rests on VK2735, Viking's experimental weight loss drug. According to the source, the candidate has shown results that could deliver twice the weight loss of semaglutide and 1.5 times that of tirzepatide. Those are the benchmark compounds behind the obesity franchises of Novo Nordisk (NVO) and Eli Lilly (LLY), so the comparison frames VKTX as a direct challenger to both.

Viking is advancing injectable and oral formulations of VK2735 into phase 3 trials. The company also raised $575 million in September to fund that development, which gives it capital behind a late-stage push.

Risk remains substantial. VKTX is a clinical-stage biotech with no commercial product, and it faces competition from established players alongside regulatory risk. A 250% implied upside is a large gap, and my interpretation is that it prices in strong phase 3 execution rather than the current state of the pipeline.