B. Riley FBR analyst Mayank Mamtani views the selloff yesterday in shares of Viking Therapeutics (VKTX) after Citron Research published a short report on Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND), the company's largest shareholder, as overdone. Interestingly, Ligand values Viking at a 10 times higher valuation than current trading levels, Mamtani tells investors in a research note. The analyst, whose firm does not cover Ligand, believes the report supports his thesis of Viking being an undervalued nonalcoholic steatohepatitis story. Additionally, competitor Lipocine's (LPCN) fat reduction data this morning, "while surprisingly positive," fell short of meeting/exceeding the 10.6% absolute fat reduction data reported from Viking in a Phase IIa study of early NASH patients, says Mamtani. He believes Viking Therapeutics maintains its "best in class status" and reiterates a Buy rating on the shares with a $16 price target. The stock in atfernoon trading is up 4%, or 35c, to $8.35.