Moran Wealth Management LLC Takes $3.85 Million Position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Moran Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 19,306 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,854,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Keybank National Association OH boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 26.9% in the 1st quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 1,874 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $374,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter valued at about $181,000. 1492 Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. 1492 Capital Management LLC now owns 1,958 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $391,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter worth about $1,737,000. Finally, BTC Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 11.5% during the 1st quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,390 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $477,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director Jason Haas sold 6,461 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.58, for a total transaction of $1,651,302.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,981 shares in the company, valued at $1,273,043.98. The trade was a 56.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.06, for a total transaction of $1,135,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 41,382 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,396,196.92. The trade was a 10.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 30,698 shares of company stock valued at $7,452,852 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on LGND shares. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. HC Wainwright increased their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $244.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $252.00 to $262.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $257.71.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ LGND opened at $319.55 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.10. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $112.41 and a 1-year high of $320.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 21.28 and a quick ratio of 20.95. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $247.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $216.82.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by ($0.21). The firm had revenue of $51.72 million for 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 revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.25 EPS for the current year.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.