Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Updates FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) updated its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday. The company provided EPS guidance of 8.000-9.000 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 4.850. The company issued revenue guidance of $245.0 million-$285.0 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $266.0 million.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on LGND. Benchmark boosted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. HC Wainwright increased their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $231.00 to $239.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $270.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $190.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $240.67.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.3%

LGND stock opened at $191.39 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $193.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $184.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 24.30 and a current ratio of 24.69. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $93.58 and a fifty-two week high of $212.49. The firm has a market cap of $3.77 billion, a PE ratio of 92.46 and a beta of 1.14.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.56. The company had revenue of $59.67 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.59 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 5.71% and a net margin of 19.34%.Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.000-9.000 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 1,804 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.31, for a total value of $339,711.24. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 26,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,931,085.66. This trade represents a 6.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.91, for a total transaction of $91,489.97. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 43,187 shares in the company, valued at $8,460,765.17. This represents a 1.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,205 shares of company stock valued at $611,192. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 64.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 378,295 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $67,011,000 after purchasing an additional 148,437 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at $21,498,000. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2,096.5% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 125,769 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $22,279,000 after purchasing an additional 120,043 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 234.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 111,986 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $19,837,000 after purchasing an additional 78,476 shares during the period. Finally, Castleark Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $11,457,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

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.