Key Points
- Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares on May 1 at an average price of $231.31 for about $1.16M, reducing his stake by 10.78% to 41,382 shares; the sale was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.
- Ligand posted a strong quarter with EPS $2.02 (vs. $1.46 expected) and revenue up 39.5% year-over-year, set FY2026 guidance of 8.00–9.00 EPS, and has seen multiple analyst price-target upgrades to an average target of $256.29.
- Institutional ownership is very high at 91.28%, with large recent purchases reported by firms including Tudor, Acuitas, Franklin Resources, Victory Capital and MFS.
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.31, for a total value of $1,156,550.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 41,382 shares in the company, valued at $9,572,070.42. This trade represents a 10.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.
Andrew Reardon also recently made the following trade(s):
- On Wednesday, April 1st, Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.24, for a total value of $1,006,200.00.
- On Wednesday, March 4th, Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.35, for a total transaction of $1,031,750.00.
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.4%
Shares of LGND stock opened at $228.36 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $4.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.17, a PEG ratio of 1.75 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 has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 22.23 and a quick ratio of 21.98. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $209.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $199.64.
Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.56. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 46.42% and a return on equity of 13.86%. The firm had revenue of $59.67 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.59 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. Ligand Pharmaceuticals's revenue was up 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.000-9.000 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 5.76 EPS for the current year.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several research analysts recently weighed in on LGND shares. HC Wainwright increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup raised their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $235.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Seven 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $256.29.
Get Our Latest Research Report on LGND
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LGND. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,789,955,000. Acuitas Investments LLC grew its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1,922.9% in the third quarter. Acuitas Investments LLC now owns 402,494 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $71,298,000 after acquiring an additional 382,597 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 115.9% during the fourth 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 during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 676.6% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 254,805 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $45,136,000 after purchasing an additional 221,996 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position 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 purchasing an additional 202,103 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company's stock.
About Ligand Pharmaceuticals
(
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.
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