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 few growth stocks with a lot of potential, based on their Wall Street price targets, are Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) And Riot platforms (NASDAQ:RIOT). Here’s how far they could go, according to Wall Street, and whether they’re slam-dunk buys for investors.
Viking Therapeutics: 99% increase
Analysts estimate that Viking’s value could potentially double over the next 12 months; it has a consensus price target of over $112. Analysts have generally been bullish on the pharmaceutical company, recently setting buy ratings on Viking.
This optimism comes from analysts’ and investors’ hopes for VK2735, a glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) treatment that has demonstrated encouraging results in clinical trials. The drug’s potential to take market share in a $100 billion anti-obesity market has made Viking an attractive speculative investment with significant upside potential.
The company currently generates no turnover and does not have any approved products. For the little ones pharmaceutical stocks, getting product approval can send stocks parabolic. When you also consider the size of the GLP-1 weight loss market, investors have even more reason to be optimistic that if VK2735 gets approval, Viking stock could actually take off.
VK2735 has shown in a phase 2 trial that it can help people lose about 15% of their body weight while still being safe. On top of that, the company also offers 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 lead to a strong uptrend in Viking stock. The only problem is that it’s not a guarantee. Until phase 3 trials take place and they too show good results, there is still quite a bit of risk here, especially with a fairly large market cap of $6 billion.
Although Viking stock can generate significant returns, investors should exercise caution as a disappointing lawsuit could cause the stock to collapse.
Riot Platforms: 80% increase
The consensus price target for crypto mining stocks Riot Platforms is priced just under $18, suggesting this struggling stock could rise as much as 80% from its current level. This is even though three of the last four analysts who set price targets have lowered their expectations for Riot.
The riot is a Bitcoin mining company and therefore 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 stock is down 36%. Earlier this year, there was a Bitcoin halving event that cut Bitcoin miner rewards in half. And although in the past this caused the price of Bitcoin to rise, the cryptocurrency has not taken off since. Without a corresponding increase in the digital currency to offset the effects of the halving, investors have become bearish on Riot shares.
This comes even as the company recently posted a record profit of $211.8 million in its latest quarterly results, for the period ending March 31. Investors know, however, that these profits are not sustainable, as much depends on the price of crypto and Riot’s profits. can be jerky. In two of the last four quarters, the company suffered a net loss.
Riot is looking to strengthen its production capabilities and has attempted to acquire Bitfarms to “create the world’s largest publicly traded Bitcoin miner.” So far it hasn’t been a success, but its stake in the Bitcoin miner is now around 12% thanks to the company’s share buyback.
There is a lot of upside potential for Riot, especially as its production capacity increases, but much of this will still depend on how Bitcoin’s valuation moves. As a result, it is a highly speculative and risky stock to hold, and is another investment that investors should be careful with, as much of the upside appeal it possesses (according to Wall Street) is linked to the stock’s recent difficulties. and Riot’s lower valuation today.
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David Jagielski has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool posts and recommends Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
2 Growth Stocks That Wall Street Analysts Say Could Soar At Least 80% was originally published by The Motley Fool
