8,700 Shares in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND Bought by Louisiana State Employees Retirement System

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 8,700 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,737,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 2,872 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $543,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 86.3% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 1,531 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $289,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL grew its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 8,474 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,602,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.3%

NASDAQ:LGND opened at $312.01 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $6.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 20.95 and a current ratio of 21.28. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $111.71 and a fifty-two week high of $320.99. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $243.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $215.01.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.84 by ($0.21). The firm 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.33 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jason Haas sold 6,461 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.58, for a total value of $1,651,302.38. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,273,043.98. This represents a 56.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 2,145 shares of the 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 sale, the director owned 33,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,541,766. This represents a 6.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 30,698 shares of company stock worth $7,452,852 over the last 90 days. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.