Why Viking Therapeutics Stock Got Thrashed on Tuesday

News from a deep-pocketed rival put the hurt on biotech Viking Therapeutics's (NASDAQ: VKTX) stock on Tuesday. Said rival seems determined to dominate a very hot therapeutic area these days, and it might be tough for a relatively small fry like Viking to compete. On the back of such worries, investors sold out of the biotech, sending its share price down by more than 6% across the trading session. That was on a good day for stocks, generally, with the S 500 index inching up by 0.2%.

That giant competitor is Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY), which on Tuesday announced that its Zepbound weight loss drug would be made available to patients in single-dose vials containing either 2.5 milligrams or 5 milligrams of the product. According to the pharmaceutical giant, the price for these new offerings is at least 50% cheaper than that of competing GLP-1 treatments for obesity.

"This new option helps millions of adults with obesity access the medicine they need, including those not eligible for the Zepbound savings card program, those without employer coverage, and those who need to self-pay outside of insurance," Eli Lilly said in the press release touting the new dosages.

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Source Fool.com