Shares of Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ: VKTX), a mid-cap biotech, are down by 34% this year. This poor performance may suggest that recent company-specific developments have rendered the stock less attractive or that it is being affected by broader market issues. The latter is true, at least to some extent, but Viking Therapeutics' thesis has not changed significantly this year. The drugmaker remains attractive compared to most of its similarly sized peers. Here is why.

Why the stock looks promising

Viking Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotech. That means the company has no product on the market, generates no revenue, and is consistently unprofitable. Investors aren't too keen on buying shares of companies that fit this profile when broader equities are experiencing significant volatility due to potential macroeconomic issues. In fairness, that makes sense. Clinical-stage biotechs carry above-average risk. Their products may never see the light of day outside the clinic, and even when they do, many do not generate substantial revenue.

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However, Viking Therapeutics is a bit different. The company is developing medicines across several areas with high unmet needs. First, there is the drugmaker's work in the weight management space. The anti-obesity drug market has experienced significant growth in recent years. Yet, analysts continue to predict that the best is yet to come. Viking Therapeutics' leading candidate in this area, VK2735, is a dual GLP-1/GIP agonist. The only approved medicine of this kind on the market is Eli Lilly's Zepbound, an undisputed leader.

Being in the same class as Zepbound doesn't guarantee VK2735's success, but it's still worth pointing out that a similar mechanism of action that led to Zepbound's breakthrough and efficacy could also prove successful for Viking Therapeutics' crown jewel. And more importantly, the investigational medicine has produced better results than almost any other mid-stage candidate in weight management, outside of those being developed by Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk. That's impressive for a mid-cap biotech, considering significantly larger drugmakers with far more resources are trying to dominate this market.

Viking Therapeutics' other mid-stage program, VK2809, performed well in patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), a disease with obesity as one of the main risk factors and whose prevalence is on the rise. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved just the first MASH medicine last year, although that will likely change soon.

The point, though, is that VK2809 could join a relatively young market in a few years and generate massive sales down the road. These two candidates set Viking Therapeutics apart from other clinical-stage biotech companies. It's also worth noting that Viking Therapeutics recently signed a multiyear manufacturing agreement with privately held CordenPharma for VK2735. Per the terms of the deal, CordenPharma will manufacture more than a billion oral formulations of the medicine annually, as well as over 100 million autoinjectors and another 100 million syringes per year.

Viking Therapeutics will make payments to CordenPharma, totaling $150 million through 2028. This deal highlights that Viking Therapeutics is already planning some post-commercial activity for its leading candidate. That's a great sign for investors.

Read the fine print

Viking Therapeutics is developing other candidates, including another weight management product that is still in preclinical studies. Following a similar blueprint, this product is a dual agonist that mimics the action of not just one but two gut hormones: amylin, which helps regulate blood sugar, and calcitonin, which regulates calcium levels. There is slow progress on that front, but Viking Therapeutics' commitment to innovation is impressive for such a small biotech. Now, Viking Therapeutics' most advanced programs could fail in phase 3 studies. If that happens, especially with VK2735, the stock price is likely to plummet.

That's a significant risk to consider. That's why the stock is probably not suitable for risk-averse investors. However, those who are comfortable with volatility should strongly consider initiating a small position in the stock. If the business goes under, which isn't that rare for smaller biotech companies, your losses will be relatively small so long as the company makes a tiny portion of your overall portfolio. But there is significant upside potential that those who invest in Viking Therapeutics today could enjoy over the long run.

Should you invest $1,000 in Viking Therapeutics right now?

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Prosper Junior Bakiny has positions in Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, and Viking Therapeutics. The Motley Fool recommends Novo Nordisk and Viking Therapeutics. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Formula 1 held its annual Spanish Grand Prix this past weekend at the Catalunya circuit near Barcelona. It's a good place to test a modern F1 car, as you need great aerodynamics to be fast around here, especially now that the awkward chicanes are gone. You also need good mechanical grip. Races used to be processional here, but the re-profiled turn 10 and the flat-out nature of the last turn have changed all that.

This was to be the weekend of new front wings, the result of a "technical directive" meant to stop excessive flexing as part of the sport's ongoing antipathy toward creatively movable aerodynamics outside a tightly described domain. The competitive order would be reset, some hoped, as their rivals would be forced to give up unfair advantages. In fact, the new wings turned out to be a nothingburger. McLaren's advantage remains, and that was clear on a circuit that tests every aspect of a racing car.

But there's only one story that anyone really cares about after Spain, and it's the one about Red Bull's Max Verstappen. For much of the race, Verstappen held onto third place, behind the too-fast McLarens. This required using one more set of tires than they did, and for his last stint, all that was left for the Red Bull driver was a set of the too-hard compound, giving him little in the way of grip.

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Realty Income (NYSE: O) is a foundational stock that can be the backbone of a diversified dividend portfolio. Most income-focused investors should at least consider adding it to their holdings. Here's a look at five key reasons right now is the time to buy this real estate investment trust (REIT).

1. Realty Income has a lofty yield

The S&P 500 index (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) is yielding about 1.3% today. The average REIT has a yield of 4.1%. Realty Income's dividend yield is roughly 5.7%. Very clearly, it is providing investors with more income than many other options.

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O Dividend Yield data by YCharts.

That said, its yield is also toward the high end of its range during the past decade. It not only looks attractive relative to other options, but the REIT's yield also looks attractive relative to its own history.

2. Realty Income keeps paying more and more

Just having a high yield isn't enough to make a dividend stock a buy. Sometimes a high yield is a sign that the dividend isn't sustainable. But when it comes to providing investors with a sustainable and growing dividend, Realty Income looks like a winner. It has increased its payout annually for three decades and counting. Within that streak is a run of 110 quarterly increases.

This is a business that is designed to reward investors with reliable dividend growth. To be fair, the average annualized increase of the past 30 years was a modest 4% or so. That, however, is just slightly faster than the historical rate of inflation, which means the buying power of its payout is increasing over time.

Image source: Getty Images.

3. It's an industry giant

The company's property focus is on single-tenant net lease assets. A net lease requires the tenant to pay for most property-level operating costs. While any single property is high risk, since there's only one tenant, Realty Income owns 15,600 properties. The risk here is low because most tenants keep paying rent.

Realty Income isn't the just the biggest in this niche, it is also highly diversified. Roughly 75% of its rents come from retail properties, with the remainder in industrial assets and a broad "other" category. (More on that below.)

Unlike many of its peers, however, Realty Income isn't confined to the U.S. It has expanded into Europe, where the net lease model is still underutilized.

Its giant portfolio and broad reach work together to support slow and steady dividend growth, because the REIT can take on deals that its peers couldn't manage. That includes large portfolio transactions and acting as an industry consolidator.

4. It has advantaged access to capital

Being able to absorb large deals is more than just a size issue. It also requires access to capital. Luckily, being a large company makes it easier to sell stock and debt. So Realty Income has an advantage on that front, too.

But it doesn't take that for granted; it has worked to ensure it has an investment-grade balance sheet. That way, when it does go to the markets looking for cash, buyers provide it with attractive terms. An attractive cost of capital lets Realty Income bid aggressively for new properties while still being able to make a healthy profit.

5. It's expanding its options

The "other" category noted above is important. It includes assets like casinos and data centers, where the REIT is starting to explore new investments. Management is also starting to include loans in its mix and is beginning to provide net-lease asset management services to institutional investors. These are all additional irons in the fire to support long-term growth.

But the really exciting aspect here is that Realty Income is being innovative and experimenting with new investments. It is using what it does well -- net leases -- and expanding in new ways.

To some extent, its size requires this approach, given that it takes more to move the needle on the top and bottom line as a company grow larger. But still, the fact that Realty Income is steadily working to maintain its dominance is a sign of management strength. And it helps set up the company and its investors for future dividend increases.

It all comes back to Realty Income's dividend yield

This list started with dividend yield, and it will end with dividend yield because that's what income investors are looking for. But as noted, having a high yield, like Realty Income does, isn't enough to make a stock a buy. Reasons Nos. 2 through 5 help cement the deal, with this entrenched industry giant offering a value proposition that few can match. Right now is a good time to buy if you are looking to add an attractive dividend stock to your portfolio.

Should you invest $1,000 in Realty Income right now?

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Reuben Gregg Brewer has positions in Realty Income. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Realty Income. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

During the past five years, MicroStrategy (NASDAQ: MSTR) stock is up almost 2,900%. No other company even comes close. Nvidia, for example, is up a little more than 1,400% during that same time period.

What's particularly remarkable about the performance of MicroStrategy, which is now doing business as Strategy, is that it is based almost entirely on its relentless accumulation of Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC). The more Bitcoin Strategy buys, the higher its stock price goes.

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As a result, a number of companies are now jumping into the fray, attempting to become "the next Strategy" by embarking on Bitcoin buying campaigns. But do they even have a chance?

The rise of the Bitcoin treasury company

Strategy now holds 580,250 Bitcoins, making it by far the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin in the world. By way of comparison, the next largest corporate holder of Bitcoin is MARA Holdings (NASDAQ: MARA), a Bitcoin mining company, which holds 48,137 Bitcoins.

Image source: Getty Images.

Strategy has gone all-in on its Bitcoin business model. In fact, in February, it rebranded itself as a Bitcoin treasury company. Essentially, this is a company that does nothing but buy Bitcoin. Even though Strategy still has a legacy enterprise software business, that's pretty much an afterthought these days.

If you go to the homepage for Strategy, it's hard even to find a mention of its software offerings. The entire website has been transformed into a Bitcoin dashboard.

Admittedly, the numbers are head-spinning. During the past 12 months, Strategy is up 139%. Bitcoin is up 53%. Gold is up 40%. Nvidia is up 22%. The only corporation that has even come close to Strategy's performance is Tesla, which is up 94%.

Potential rivals to Strategy

Potential Strategy rivals have a tall task ahead of themselves. They have to start buying Bitcoin at a hefty price of more than $100,000, and that requires a huge war chest. Strategy started its Bitcoin acquisition buying five years ago, when the price was much lower.

That said, there's one potential rival that's generating a lot of buzz these days, and that's Twenty One Capital. Most likely, you've never heard of the company, and for good reason. It only opened at the end of April, so it's only been around for a month.

In that brief time span, Twenty One Capital has managed to acquire 31,500 Bitcoins, making it the third-largest corporate holder of Bitcoin in the world. It has gone from zero to $500 million in 30 days.

You might be scratching your head here. If a single Bitcoin costs upward of $100,000, how did this company manage to snatch up 31,500 of these expensive coins in such a short period of time? The answer is simple: It has some friends with deep pockets.

Twenty One Capital launched with the support of Tether, the world's largest stablecoin, and SoftBank, the Japanese tech behemoth. It planning to go public with the help of Wall Street firm Cantor Fitzgerald, which had a SPAC (special purpose acquisition company) just waiting to be put to work.

There are more Bitcoin treasury companies on the way. For example, former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy recently said he plans to convert one of his companies into a Bitcoin treasury company. Every day, it seems, there's a new company that's ditching its previous business model and going all in on becoming a Bitcoin treasury company.

What could possibly go wrong?

The Bitcoin treasury company playbook seems easy to follow: Buy Bitcoin, see your stock price soar. As long as the price of Bitcoin continues to go up, this could be a very profitable strategy. Things get dicier, however, if the price of Bitcoin ever falls. All of a sudden, any company holding Bitcoin on its balance sheet is going to have to take huge write-downs every quarter.

Moreover, the stakes continue to rise. As Bloomberg points out, in order to one-up Strategy, you need to do something new. It is no longer enough just to buy up as much Bitcoin as you can -- you now need to do something with it to create additional value. At a minimum, you need to outperform Bitcoin by at least a slight margin, otherwise investors will simply move their money into relatively safe spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Should you buy Strategy?

If 2024 was the year that Bitcoin went mainstream, 2025 might be the year that the Bitcoin treasury company goes mainstream. I'm keeping a close eye on which new corporations are buying Bitcoin, as well as what their strategies are for outperforming Bitcoin over the long haul.

For now, Strategy is still the best option. You really can't argue with a company that is outperforming every single Magnificent Seven stock, and even Bitcoin itself. But, with the arrival of so many new Bitcoin treasury company copycats, it remains to be seen how much longer Strategy can remain the market leader.

Should you invest $1,000 in Strategy right now?

Before you buy stock in Strategy, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Strategy wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $651,049!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $828,224!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 979% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 171% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025

Dominic Basulto has positions in Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin, Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

When to file for Social Security benefits is one of the most important decisions you'll make in retirement. Most people first become eligible for retirement benefits starting at age 62, but experts typically recommend waiting until 70 to maximize your monthly check.

Waiting until age 70 could increase your Social Security benefit by roughly 77% compared to claiming at age 62. Most people will live more than long enough for the bigger monthly check to make up for the years of foregone benefits. Indeed, the optimal decision for a single retiree is to wait until 70, barring any reasons to expect a shorter-than-average life.

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But no financial decision should be made in a vacuum. There are plenty of reasons why it might make sense to claim benefits long before age 70. In fact, I plan to claim my Social Security very early, perhaps as soon as I'm eligible. Here are three reasons why it makes sense for me.

Image source: Getty Images.

1. My spouse (to be) is the higher earner

Social Security claiming strategies can become a lot more complex when you're married in retirement.

It won't always be the case, but it usually makes sense for the higher-earning spouse to wait until age 70 to claim Social Security. As mentioned, the average person will live more than long enough for the bigger benefits check to make up for the Social Security they didn't receive in their 60s.

On top of that, the lower-earning spouse may end up receiving survivor benefits if the higher-earning spouse passes away first. Survivor benefits allow the surviving spouse to collect total Social Security benefits equal to the amount the higher-earning spouse received before passing away. That means the lifetime value of delaying benefits until 70 for the higher earner should account for the dual life expectancy of both spouses.

At the same time, the other spouse should consider collecting retirement benefits as early as age 62. Typically, if one partner waits until age 70, the present value of expected household income is maximized by the other partner claiming as soon as they're eligible.

2. I expect to claim spousal benefits

As things stand, I expect my future spouse's retirement benefit to be big enough that I would receive more each month by claiming spousal benefits over my own. Spousal benefits are worth up to 50% of your partner's primary insurance amount, which is the amount they'd collect if applying for benefits exactly when they reach full retirement age.

The key thing about spousal benefits is that, unlike personal retirement benefits, they do not receive delayed retirement credits. Personal benefits will increase by 8% of your primary insurance amount for each year you delay beyond your full retirement age up until age 70. Spousal benefits will max out at your full retirement age.

For me, that's age 67. As such, there's no reason I should delay claiming benefit beyond that age. That's despite the fact that I'm older than my partner, she's likely going to delay benefits until age 70, and I'll be waiting several years to switch to spousal benefits. It's worth taking the slightly smaller personal benefit for a few years before switching to the bigger spousal benefit.

3. I'm well-positioned to avoid taxes on Social Security income

One of the most overlooked challenges of collecting Social Security in your early 60s is Social Security taxation. Those taxes can completely nullify the benefits of strategies like Roth conversions and capital gains harvesting.

That's why it's important to position your finances to minimize the effect of Social Security taxes before you apply. If you don't, you'll end up decreasing the value of your benefits.

Social Security taxes are based on a metric called combined income, which is equal to the sum of your adjusted gross income, any untaxed interest income, and half your Social Security income. If your combined income exceeds certain thresholds, a portion of your Social Security income becomes taxable. The thresholds don't get adjusted for inflation, so they're increasingly difficult to avoid.

Data source: IRS.

I expect to be able to maintain a very low combined income in retirement, thanks to savings in Roth accounts and increasing my cost basis on taxable assets. We plan to stop earning income well before reaching the age of eligibility for Social Security, which will provide ample time to strategically take capital gains and convert some pre-tax retirement assets to a Roth account. As a result, we should be able to keep our adjusted gross income low in our 60s, minimizing the tax burden of Social Security.

I'm fully aware that most people aren't in the fortunate position I'm in. But doing whatever you can to position your finances strategically before you start Social Security is an important factor in making the most of your benefits, whether you're claiming at age 70 or well before it.

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There's nothing easy about losing someone you care about, regardless of their relationship to you. Not only do you count on the important people in your life for emotional support, but you may also depend on them for financial support.

If you've lost someone and you're eligible for Social Security survivor benefits based on their work record, it's important to ensure you're receiving the support you deserve.

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The following questions are designed to help you determine if you're getting everything you're eligible for from your Social Security survivor benefits.

Image source: Getty Images.

Who's eligible?

According to the Social Security Administration (SSA), the following may be eligible for benefits after the loss of a loved one:

Spouses and ex-spouses

It's possible you're eligible if:

• You're 60 or older or 50 to 59 with a disability, and
• You were married for at least nine months before your spouse passed away, and
• You didn't remarry before age 60 (age 50 if you're living with a disability)
• You're a surviving spouse (of any age) who's caring for the child of the deceased, that child has a disability and is receiving Social Security benefits
• You're an ex-spouse who was married to the deceased for at least 10 years

Exception: The SSA reports that a person may be eligible for Social Security survivor benefits regardless of age or how long they were married. The example given is of a person who is caring for the child of the deceased.

Children

The child of someone who's died could be eligible if they're unmarried and are:

• Age 17 and younger, or
• Ages 18 to 19 and in school (K-12) full-time, or
• Any age if they developed a disability at age 21 or younger

Exception: Under specific circumstances, the SSA also pays benefits to married children, stepchildren, adopted children, grandchildren, and step-grandchildren.

Adult children with a disability

• An adult child with a disability that began before their 22nd birthday may be eligible for benefits.

Dependent parents

• Parents aged 62 or older who were financially supported by their child who died might be eligible.

As you can see, rules regarding who's eligible for benefits aren't written in stone, and the SSA looks at applications on a case-by-case basis. If you or someone you care about may be eligible for survivor benefits, it's important to apply.

How long can a caretaker continue to receive benefits?

If you're caring for the child or children of a deceased spouse, you're eligible to receive benefits to care for them until they reach age 16. At 16, the children will receive benefits based on their deceased parent's work record until they are 18 or 19, as long as they remain unmarried. If a child is a full-time student in high school when they turn 18, they will continue to receive benefits until they graduate or until two months after turning 19. If a child is disabled, they will continue to receive benefits after 18.

What if the deceased hadn't filed for Social Security?

You're eligible to collect survivor benefits even if your spouse hadn't claimed Social Security at the time of their death. If that's the case, your benefits will typically be based on the amount they would have received at full retirement age.

What if the deceased postponed retirement?

Unlike the spouses of still-living Social Security recipients, if your spouse postponed retirement to collect a larger benefit, your benefit as the surviving spouse will also be based on the higher amount.

Can someone file for their ex-spouse's survivor benefits if they've remarried?

If an ex-spouse dies but you remarry before age 60 (or 50 if you're disabled), you can't receive survivor benefits based on their work record unless the most recent marriage ends. However, if you remarry at age 60 or later, you can continue to receive benefits based on your former spouse's record.

If you did remarry at 60 or later, check your current spouse's estimated benefits to learn if they're higher or lower than the benefits you're eligible to receive based on your deceased ex's record. You cannot receive both, so apply for the higher of the two amounts.

How do I know how much I'll receive?

If you're a surviving spouse, you may receive full benefits at your full retirement age. However, you can receive a reduced benefit amount as early as age 60. If you receive survivor benefits before your full retirement age, the benefit amount will be permanently reduced.

Exception: If you have a disability, benefits can start as early as age 50.

The $22,924 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook

If you're like most Americans, you're a few years (or more) behind on your retirement savings. But a handful of little-known "Social Security secrets" could help ensure a boost in your retirement income.

One easy trick could pay you as much as $22,924 more... each year! Once you learn how to maximize your Social Security benefits, we think you could retire confidently with the peace of mind we're all after. Join Stock Advisor to learn more about these strategies.

View the "Social Security secrets" »

The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.