Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND Stock Purchased by Profund Advisors LLC

Profund Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 191.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,253 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,104 shares during the period. Profund Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,953,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ranger Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $81,424,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $41,429,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 358.8% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 107,859 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $21,535,000 after buying an additional 84,349 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 31.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 157,865 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $31,518,000 after acquiring an additional 37,696 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 62.2% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 75,188 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $15,012,000 after acquiring an additional 28,820 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Here are the key news stories impacting Ligand Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter adjusted EPS was $2.67, exceeding the $2.33 analyst consensus, while revenue of $78.75 million also topped the $77 million estimate. Ligand Q3 earnings flash
• Positive Sentiment: Royalty revenue rose 51% year over year to $70.3 million, highlighting the strength of Ligand’s royalty-based business and supporting investor optimism about recurring revenue growth. Ligand third-quarter financial results
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised its full-year 2026 adjusted diluted EPS guidance to $9.50-$9.75 from $9.00-$9.50 and reaffirmed its revenue outlook, providing a stronger earnings outlook. Ligand third-quarter guidance update
• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada raised its price target to $357 from $345 and maintained an “outperform” rating, signaling continued analyst confidence in LGND’s outlook. Royal Bank of Canada rating update
• Neutral Sentiment: The quarterly report was mixed: revenue declined 31.8% year over year and EPS fell from $3.09 in the prior-year quarter, but the results still exceeded expectations because of the company’s royalty performance and earnings mix. Ligand third-quarter earnings results

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of LGND stock opened at $322.75 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 144.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.16. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $175.89 and a 1 year high of $326.63. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $296.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $252.30. The company has a current ratio of 13.35, a quick ratio of 30.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The biotechnology company reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.33 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $78.75 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.00 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 20.27% and a return on equity of 5.22%. The business’s revenue was down 31.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.09 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 5.25 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Jason Haas sold 7,138 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.81, for a total transaction of $2,090,077.78. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,165,676.61. This trade represents a 64.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.09, for a total value of $1,430,450.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 36,514 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,446,290.26. This trade represents a 12.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 49,979 shares of company stock worth $14,623,948 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on LGND shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $345.00 to $357.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Barclays began coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, September 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $345.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $390.00 to $397.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Leerink Partners started coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, August 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $330.00 target price for the company. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $358.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $339.22.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ: LGND) is a biopharmaceutical company that develops, acquires and licenses technologies intended to improve the development and commercialization of medicines. Rather than operating primarily as a traditional drug manufacturer, Ligand generally works with pharmaceutical and biotechnology partners, receiving licensing payments, royalties and other consideration tied to partnered products.

The company’s principal technology is Captisol, a modified cyclodextrin designed to improve the solubility, stability and delivery of certain active pharmaceutical ingredients.