Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $206.81, but opened at $196.96. Ligand Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $184.4550, with a volume of 174,262 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, December 29th. 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 price objective for the company. HC Wainwright upped their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $206.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $190.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. 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.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $239.33.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 9.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 24.30 and a current ratio of 24.69. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $197.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $171.12. The stock has a market cap of $3.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 90.93 and a beta of 0.97.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 1,804 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.31, for a total transaction of $339,711.24. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 26,186 shares in the company, valued at $4,931,085.66. This trade represents a 6.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.58, for a total value of $88,533.86. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 43,654 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,275,925.32. This represents a 1.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 3,205 shares of company stock valued at $608,923. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 86.3% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Maseco LLP purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 85.8% in the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 210 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $47,000. 91.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.