Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) CFO Sells $244,842.48 in Stock

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 2,104 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.37, for a total transaction of $244,842.48. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 20,647 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,402,691.39. This trade represents a 9.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LGND opened at $109.19 on Friday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $67.53 and a 1 year high of $129.90. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $116.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $104.27. The company has a market cap of $2.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.50 and a beta of 1.01.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Barclays PLC grew its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 43,456 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,349,000 after acquiring an additional 7,247 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 428,270 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $42,874,000 after purchasing an additional 22,495 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 12.4% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 59,574 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $5,963,000 after purchasing an additional 6,555 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 163,924 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $16,407,000 after buying an additional 8,584 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 115,480 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $11,558,000 after buying an additional 16,446 shares in the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on LGND. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $147.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development and licensing of biopharmaceutical assets worldwide. Its commercial programs include Kyprolis and Evomela, which are used to treat multiple myeloma; Rylaze, a recombinant erwinia asparaginase for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoblastic lymphoma in adult and pediatric patients; Filspari, a dual endothelin and angiotensin II receptor antagonist in development for rare kidney diseases and non-immunosuppressive treatment indicated for immunoglobulin A nephropathy; Teriparatide injection product for osteoporosis; Vaxneuvance for the prevention of invasive disease caused by streptococcus pneumoniae serotypes; and Pneumosil, a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine to help fight against pneumococcal pneumonia among children.