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Investing.com - JPMorgan has reiterated an Overweight rating on Viking Therapeutic (NASDAQ:VKTX) following the release of headline data from the phase 2a Venture Oral trial. The company is entering a highly competitive weight loss market dominated by established players like Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY), which InvestingPro identifies as a prominent player in the Pharmaceuticals industry with strong financials and 36.8% revenue growth over the last twelve months.
The phase 2a trial showed that the three highest-dosing arms of 60mg, 90mg, and 120mg demonstrated average placebo-adjusted weight loss of approximately 7.5%, 10%, and 11% respectively over 13 weeks, which JPMorgan considers "very strong compared with other orals in development."
Tolerability issues were noted in the trial, with an overall treatment discontinuation rate due to adverse events of 20% in the treatment arm compared to 13% in the placebo arm. Vomiting occurred in 20-35% of patients in the three highest dose arms, while the two lowest arms had vomiting rates of 5-15% compared to approximately 10% for placebo.
Nausea rates were also higher than expected at approximately 58% for patients on treatment versus 48% for placebo. JPMorgan noted that 99% of treatment-emergent adverse events were classified as mild or moderate.
Despite tolerability concerns being higher than anticipated, JPMorgan still believes that oral VK-2735 "offers strong efficacy with a manageable tolerability profile" and expects the company to address these issues through "further/optimized titration" schedules. For comprehensive analysis of pharmaceutical companies and their clinical trials, InvestingPro offers detailed research reports covering 1,400+ stocks, transforming complex Wall Street data into actionable intelligence for smarter investing decisions.
In other recent news, Eli Lilly reported second-quarter earnings for 2025 that surpassed expectations, with the company also raising its full-year guidance. Despite this strong financial performance, investor focus shifted to the clinical trial results for Eli Lilly’s weight loss drug candidate, Orforglipron, which did not meet market expectations. Cantor Fitzgerald responded by lowering its price target for Eli Lilly to $825 from $975, maintaining an Overweight rating, while Guggenheim reduced its target to $875 from $942, keeping a Buy rating. Concerns about Eli Lilly’s performance in the GLP-1 market, particularly regarding Orforglipron, influenced these adjustments.
Additionally, Eli Lilly has increased the price of its weight loss drug Mounjaro in the UK by up to 170%, raising the cost of the highest doses from £122 to £330. In legal matters, the Texas Attorney General has filed a lawsuit against Eli Lilly, alleging that the company bribed healthcare providers to prescribe its medications, specifically mentioning GLP-1 drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound. These developments highlight ongoing challenges and strategic decisions for Eli Lilly in the pharmaceutical landscape.
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