Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) CFO Octavio Espinoza Sells 31,641 Shares

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 31,641 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.06, for a total transaction of $9,241,070.46. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 27,696 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,088,893.76. The trade was a 53.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

LGND opened at $294.60 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $291.80 and a 200-day moving average of $238.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.51, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.13. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $149.51 and a 12-month high of $326.63. The company has a quick ratio of 20.95, a current ratio of 31.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $63.69 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $61.30 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 20.06% and a net margin of 67.88%.Ligand Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 33.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.60 earnings per share. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.000-9.500 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $266.00 to $388.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $387.00 price target for the company. Leerink Partners initiated coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $330.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective 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, HC Wainwright increased their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $289.00 to $358.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Ligand Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $335.75.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised 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 purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 17,050.0% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 343 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1,040.0% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 342 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is 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.