State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Sells 6,832 Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D cut its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 50.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 6,689 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 6,832 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,265,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in LGND. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.9% during the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,014 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $357,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 31.6% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 271 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 86.3% during the 3rd 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. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,688 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $527,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 85.8% in the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 210 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:LGND opened at $220.48 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 21.28 and a quick ratio of 20.95. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $98.89 and a 1 year high of $247.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.20. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $213.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $201.04.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by ($0.21). Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 55.95% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The firm had revenue of $51.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.10 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 5.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LGND has been the subject of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $252.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. HC Wainwright upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $257.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.35, for a total transaction of $1,031,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 36,869 shares in the company, valued at $7,607,918.15. The trade was a 11.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 2,034 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total transaction of $409,851.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 33,793 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,809,289.50. The trade was a 5.68% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 35,448 shares of company stock valued at $7,450,977. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

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.