Viking Therapeutics shares tumbled as much as 41% on Tuesday after mid-stage data for its experimental obesity pill VK2735 failed to match the most bullish investor forecasts. The sell-off wiped about $1.8 billion from the San Diego-based company’s market value and marked its steepest one-day decline since going public in 2015. In the 280-patient Phase 2 VENTURE-Oral study, a once-daily 120-milligram dose of VK2735 produced a 12.2% average reduction in body weight, or 26.6 pounds, over 13 weeks, versus a 1.3% decline for placebo. All doses above 15 mg achieved statistically significant weight loss, but the headline figure fell short of the 15% some analysts had pencilled in after stronger results from rival programs at Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly. Safety and tolerability emerged as the bigger concern. Overall, 28% of VK2735 recipients discontinued treatment, rising to 38% at the top dose, compared with 18% on placebo. Gastrointestinal events—nausea in 58% of treated patients and vomiting in 26%—were the main reasons for dropout, although most were classified as mild or moderate. Chief Executive Officer Brian Lian told investors the company may explore slower dose escalation and lower-dose maintenance regimens in future trials, noting weight loss continued beyond the 13-week mark in pharmacokinetic analyses. Despite the stock rout, JPMorgan, BTIG, William Blair and other brokerages reiterated bullish ratings, arguing the pill’s efficacy remains competitive if tolerability can be improved.
$VKTX | 𝐕𝐢𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐜 (VKTX): Jefferies reiterates 𝐁𝐮𝐲, maintains 𝐏𝐓 𝐚𝐭 $𝟏𝟎𝟏 Analyst says market overreacting to GI AEs, highlights strong oral VK2735 efficacy and dosing strategy. https://t.co/rzgXSZJHJr
Viking shares sink as obesity pill misses expectations in key study https://t.co/cPAuSLOMa7 $VKTX @ByJonGardner
$VKTX Comparing my estimates with the actual results (grey bars), the weight-loss outcomes were largely within the ~65% band (+/-1 SD), which is encouraging. On safety, I think the projections were reasonable given that: 1. The technique I used was far from perfect, assuming a https://t.co/3NPFNww8Sk https://t.co/mVL3upqvde