The S&P500 remains near record levels as markets have been strong this year. Finding good stocks to buy in such a hot market can be a challenge. But one A number of growth stocks with a lot of potential, based on their Wall Street price targets, are Viking therapies (NASDAQ: VKTX) And Riot platforms (NASDAQ:RIOT). Here’s how high Wall Street thinks they could go, and whether these are slam-dunk buys for investors.
Viking Therapeutics: 99% benefit
Analysts see Viking potentially doubling in value over the next twelve months; it has a consensus price target above $112. Analysts are generally bullish on the pharmaceutical company and recently set buy ratings on Viking.
That optimism stems from the hopes analysts and investors have for VK2735, a glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) treatment that has shown encouraging results in clinical trials. The potential for the drug to gain market share in a $100 billion anti-obesity market has made Viking an attractive speculative investment with a lot of potential.
The company today generates no revenue and has no approved products. For small pharmaceutical stocks, gaining approval for a product can send the stock parabolic. When you also consider the size of the GLP-1 weight loss market, there’s even more reason for investors to be optimistic that if VK2735 wins approval, Viking stock could indeed take off.
VK2735 has shown in a Phase 2 trial that it can help people lose about 15% of their body weight, while also being safe. In addition, the company also has a pill version of the drug, and participants in a phase 1 trial lost 5% of their body weight after just four weeks of use.
If one or both of these treatments gain approval from regulators, it could create a lot of bullishness in Viking stock. The only problem is that this is not a guarantee. Until Phase 3 trials take place and also show strong results, there is still quite a bit of risk here, especially if the stock is trading at a fairly significant market cap of $6 billion.
While significant returns can be made from Viking stock, investors should proceed with caution as a disappointing trial could send the stock crashing.
Riot platforms: 80% advantage
The consensus price target for crypto mining stock Riot Platforms is just under $18, suggesting this troubled stock could rise as much as 80% from where it is today. That’s even as three of the past four analysts who set price targets lowered their expectations for Riot.
Riot is one Bitcoin mining company and so much of its success will depend on the price of the cryptocurrency. But as the cryptocurrency’s price has risen more than 60% this year, Riot’s shares have fallen 36%. Earlier this year there was a Bitcoin halving event where rewards for Bitcoin miners were halved. And while that has led to Bitcoin’s price rising in the past, the cryptocurrency has failed to take off since. Without a corresponding rise in the digital currency to offset the effects of the halving, investors have turned bearish on Riot’s stock.
This comes as the company recently posted a record profit of $211.8 million in its latest quarterly results, for the period ending March 31. However, investors know that those profits are not sustainable as a lot depends on the price of crypto and Riot’s revenues. can be choppy. In two of the last four quarters, the company has posted a net loss.
Riot wants to strengthen its production capabilities and is trying to acquire them Bit farms to “create the largest publicly traded Bitcoin miner in the world.” So far it hasn’t been successful, but its stake in the Bitcoin miner now stands at around 12% as it has been buying up shares of the company.
There is a lot of potential for Riot, especially as production capacity increases, but it will still largely depend on where Bitcoin’s valuation goes. As a result, this is a highly speculative and risky stock to hold, and it is again an investment that investors should be careful with, as much of the attractive upside it holds (according to Wall Street) has to do with the recent share problems. and Riot’s lower valuation today.
Should you invest $1,000 in Viking Therapeutics now?
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David Jagielski has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool holds and recommends positions in Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
2 Growth Stocks That Wall Street Analysts Think Could Rise At Least 80% Originally published by The Motley Fool
