Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Releases FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) updated its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 9.000-9.500 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 8.130. The company issued revenue guidance of $270.0 million-$310.0 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $287.5 million.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on LGND. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $387.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $262.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $326.00 target price (up from $285.00) on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday. Bank of America increased their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $266.00 to $388.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, HC Wainwright boosted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $326.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of LGND traded up $12.01 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $314.58. The stock had a trading volume of 94,430 shares, compared to its average volume of 278,108. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $137.14 and a fifty-two week high of $326.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 20.95 and a current ratio of 21.28. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $283.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $234.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.68, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.13.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $63.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.87 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 55.95%.Ligand Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 33.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.60 earnings per share. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.000-9.500 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 2,145 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.00, for a total value of $544,830.00. Following the sale, the director owned 33,629 shares in the company, valued at $8,541,766. This trade represents a 6.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jason Haas sold 6,461 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.58, for a total transaction of $1,651,302.38. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,273,043.98. This represents a 56.47% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 35,231 shares of company stock worth $9,199,401 in the last 90 days. 5.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of LGND. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $209,000. Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 237.4% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,127 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $213,000 after acquiring an additional 793 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at $210,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $207,000. Finally, Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth about $210,000. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

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.