Brokerages Set Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) PT at $206.33

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $206.3333.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LGND. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $206.00 to $231.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $190.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $185.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.84, for a total value of $91,457.28. Following the transaction, the director owned 44,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,640,656.64. The trade was a 1.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Jason Aryeh sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total value of $1,708,100.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 69,289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,835,254.09. The trade was a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,401 shares of company stock valued at $1,972,576. 7.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LGND. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $360,000. Cim Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $254,000. Castleark Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $11,457,000. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.5% during the third quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 23,299 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,030,000 after buying an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 2.3%

NASDAQ:LGND opened at $188.50 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a PE ratio of 91.06 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 24.69, a quick ratio of 24.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $191.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $154.23. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $93.58 and a 12 month high of $212.49.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The biotechnology company reported $3.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $1.13. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 5.71% and a net margin of 19.34%.The firm had revenue of $86.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.71 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 123.0% on a year-over-year basis. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.400-7.650 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development and licensing of biopharmaceutical assets worldwide. Its commercial programs include Kyprolis and Evomela, which are used to treat multiple myeloma; Rylaze, a recombinant erwinia asparaginase for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoblastic lymphoma in adult and pediatric patients; Filspari, a dual endothelin and angiotensin II receptor antagonist in development for rare kidney diseases and non-immunosuppressive treatment indicated for immunoglobulin A nephropathy; Teriparatide injection product for osteoporosis; Vaxneuvance for the prevention of invasive disease caused by streptococcus pneumoniae serotypes; and Pneumosil, a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine to help fight against pneumococcal pneumonia among children.