Isthmus Partners LLC Cuts Stock Position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Isthmus Partners LLC lessened its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 16.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 24,708 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 4,790 shares during the period. Isthmus Partners LLC’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,672,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth $284,000. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 18.3% during the 4th quarter. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC now owns 8,520 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,611,000 after buying an additional 1,320 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $345,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 25.2% in the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 2,264 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $428,000 after acquiring an additional 456 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $224,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LGND has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America initiated coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $244.00 price objective on the stock. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $252.00 to $262.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $257.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 2,034 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total value of $409,851.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 33,793 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,809,289.50. This represents a 5.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 13,423 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.83, for a total value of $2,762,856.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 21,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,458,689.46. The trade was a 38.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 37,949 shares of company stock worth $8,014,056 in the last 90 days. 7.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $213.21 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 21.28 and a quick ratio of 20.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.20. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $98.89 and a 1-year high of $247.38. The company’s 50-day moving average is $214.48 and its 200 day moving average is $201.85.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.84 by ($0.21). The business had revenue of $51.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.10 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 55.95% and a return on equity of 16.19%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.33 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 5.46 EPS for the current year.

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.