Viking Therapeutics reports obesity drug maintains weight loss after dosing switch, shares jump 36%

Viking Therapeutics said its Phase 2 trial of the dual-acting obesity candidate VK2735 showed participants largely kept the weight they had lost when the dosing schedule changed from a weekly injection to a biweekly or monthly shot.

The study enrolled 180 adults with obesity but no related health conditions. After 21 weeks on one of four dosing regimens or placebo, participants switched to the less frequent maintenance dosing for an additional 12 weeks.

Those receiving VK2735 retained up to 90% of their weight loss during the maintenance period, suggesting the drug may address adherence challenges seen with other GLP-1 therapies.

Analyst Thomas Smith of Leerink Research called the data stellar and noted it could strengthen Viking's competitive positioning. The news sent Viking's stock up as much as 36% in morning trading.