Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Insider Sells $1,135,300.00 in Stock

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.06, for a total value of $1,135,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 41,382 shares in the company, valued at $9,396,196.92. The trade was a 10.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Andrew Reardon also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, May 1st, Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.31, for a total value of $1,156,550.00.
• On Wednesday, April 1st, Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.24, for a total value of $1,006,200.00.
• On Wednesday, March 4th, Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.35, for a total value of $1,031,750.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $2.98 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $232.76. The company had a trading volume of 185,122 shares, compared to its average volume of 222,379. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 20.95 and a current ratio of 21.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a 50 day moving average of $218.06 and a 200 day moving average of $204.26. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $101.30 and a 52-week high of $247.38.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.84 by ($0.21). The company had revenue of $51.72 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.10 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 55.95%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on LGND. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. HC Wainwright upped their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $252.00 to $262.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $257.71.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 86.3% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. USA Financial Formulas bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 31.6% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 271 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $52,000. 91.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company that acquires, develops and out-licenses proprietary technologies designed to help pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies discover and develop novel medicines. Operating primarily through its research services and royalty-generating businesses, Ligand focuses on building a diversified portfolio of technology platforms and partnering with industry leaders to advance therapeutic candidates across multiple disease areas.

The company’s product offerings center around several core platforms.