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Viking Therapeutics shares jump on VK2735 maintenance dosing data
The new study tracked how patients maintained obesity weight loss after moving from weekly VK2735 injections to every other week or monthly dosing.
Viking Therapeutics stock jumped 36% on Sept. 22 after new maintenance data for VK2735, its GLP-1/GIP obesity candidate. The study focused on how long patients kept weight loss and how frequently they needed injections, rather than aiming to show additional weight loss in the moment.
According to MarketBeat Ratings, about 180 adults with obesity received VK2735 or placebo for 21 weeks, with weight loss of roughly 16% to 19% for VK2735 versus about 0% for placebo. Patients were then moved to less frequent dosing for 12 weeks, and Viking reported that patients maintained most weight loss after the switch.
MarketBeat Ratings said results depended on the maintenance schedule and patient group sizes, with every other week dosing maintaining about 90% of weight loss and monthly dosing maintaining about 85%. Those moved to placebo maintained about 61%, and gastrointestinal side effects during maintenance were described as similar to placebo.
The outlet also noted that the GLP-1 obesity market is crowded and pricing is under pressure, with weekly injections currently dominant. Both Lilly’s Zepbound and Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy require weekly shots, though both companies also offer daily pill options, making VK2735’s lower frequency dosing a key differentiator if it holds up as the program advances.