Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Insider Andrew Reardon Sells 5,000 Shares

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.99, for a total transaction of $1,444,950.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 41,514 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,997,130.86. The trade was a 10.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Andrew Reardon also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, July 1st, Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.28, for a total value of $1,566,400.00.
• On Monday, June 1st, Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.06, for a total value of $1,135,300.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

LGND opened at $300.79 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $282.10 and its 200 day moving average is $233.39. 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 has a market cap of $6.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.81, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.13. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $132.21 and a 12-month high of $326.63.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by ($0.21). The company had revenue of $51.72 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.10 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 55.95%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.56 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on LGND shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $262.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. HC Wainwright upped their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $255.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $387.00 price objective for the company. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $326.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 86.3% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $52,000. Covestor Ltd grew its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 17,050.0% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 343 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 341 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew 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 valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the period. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.