Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND Stock Position Lessened by Stephens Investment Management Group LLC

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 1.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 494,670 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 6,370 shares during the period. Ligand Pharmaceuticals makes up approximately 1.4% of Stephens Investment Management Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $98,761,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 86.3% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1,040.0% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 342 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.06, for a total value of $1,135,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 41,382 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,396,196.92. This represents a 10.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 2,145 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.00, for a total value of $544,830.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 33,629 shares in the company, valued at $8,541,766. This represents a 6.00% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 30,698 shares of company stock valued at $7,452,852. Corporate insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on LGND. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. HC Wainwright raised their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $244.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $252.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $257.71.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $319.55 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 21.28, a quick ratio of 20.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $247.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $216.65. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $112.41 and a 52 week high of $320.99. The stock has a market cap of $6.40 billion, a PE ratio of 43.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.10.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $59.10 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 55.95% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.33 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.25 EPS for the current fiscal 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.