Key Points
- Director John Kozarich sold 467 shares on Feb. 2 at an average price of $195.91 for about $91,490, trimming his holding by 1.07% to 43,187 shares.
- Ligand reported a strong quarter—$3.09 EPS vs. $1.96 expected and 123% revenue growth—and analysts have raised targets, leaving a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with an average target of $239.33.
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) Director John Kozarich sold 467 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.91, for a total transaction of $91,489.97. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 43,187 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,460,765.17. The trade was a 1.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance
Shares of NASDAQ:LGND opened at $198.33 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 24.69 and a quick ratio of 24.30. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $93.58 and a 1 year high of $212.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.90 billion, a PE ratio of 95.81 and a beta of 1.14. The business's 50 day moving average price is $194.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $179.69.
Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last released 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. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 19.34% and a return on equity of 5.71%. The company had revenue of $86.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.71 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals's quarterly revenue was up 123.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several research firms have issued reports on LGND. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. 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. HC Wainwright upped their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $206.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $270.00 target price for the company. Finally, Benchmark upped their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $239.33.
Read Our Latest Research Report on Ligand Pharmaceuticals
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.9% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 27,377 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,112,000 after buying an additional 769 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 667,311 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $118,207,000 after purchasing an additional 19,370 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 42.6% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 108,424 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $19,416,000 after purchasing an additional 32,379 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 14.1% in the second quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 745 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 59.5% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 541,845 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $95,982,000 after buying an additional 202,103 shares during the period. 91.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
Featured Stories
This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from InsiderTrades.com in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].
