Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $314.80 and last traded at $314.04, with a volume of 539300 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $303.59.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on LGND shares. Citigroup upped their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Weiss Ratings cut Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $252.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. HC Wainwright upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $244.00 price target for the company. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $257.71.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $6.25 billion, a PE ratio of 42.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $243.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $215.01. The company has a current ratio of 21.28, a quick ratio of 20.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.84 by ($0.21). Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 55.95%.The business had revenue of $51.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.10 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.33 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jason Aryeh sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $1,125,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 102,580 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,645,000. The trade was a 4.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John L. Lamattina sold 4,591 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.88, for a total value of $1,151,790.08. Following the sale, the director directly owned 26,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,765,982.72. This trade represents a 14.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 30,698 shares of company stock worth $7,452,852. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LGND. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 108,926 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $19,295,000 after buying an additional 2,860 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG increased its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 27.8% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 143,067 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $27,050,000 after buying an additional 31,081 shares in the last quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 61.0% during the 4th quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 26,241 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,961,000 after acquiring an additional 9,944 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 82,991 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $14,701,000 after purchasing an additional 11,858 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 115.9% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 496,160 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $93,809,000 after purchasing an additional 266,304 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

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.