Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Stock: Insider Jason Aryeh Sells 1,411 Shares

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Director Jason Aryeh sold 1,411 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.24, for a total transaction of $451,858.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 109,458 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,052,829.92. The trade was a 1.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Jason Aryeh also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, November 2nd, Jason Aryeh sold 700 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.43, for a total transaction of $224,301.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 2.1%

Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $6.50 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $313.52. The company had a trading volume of 195,575 shares, compared to its average volume of 239,773. The firm has a market cap of $6.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 139.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 30.96 and a current ratio of 1.22. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $175.89 and a 1 year high of $326.63. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $297.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $253.48.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, August 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $330.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays started coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, September 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $345.00 target price for the company. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $358.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. Citigroup raised their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $390.00 to $397.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $255.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $339.22.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LGND. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $75,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 118.9% in the 2nd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 243 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 49.8% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 337 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GK Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $122,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

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.