Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Earns “Buy” Rating from HC Wainwright

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by analysts at HC Wainwright in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $157.00 target price on the biotechnology company’s stock. HC Wainwright’s price target indicates a potential upside of 29.48% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Barclays boosted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Benchmark raised their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $143.17.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LGND traded down $8.65 during trading on Friday, hitting $121.25. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 260,623 shares, compared to its average volume of 103,330. The company has a 50-day moving average of $105.57 and a 200-day moving average of $95.40. The firm has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.13 and a beta of 0.99. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $51.21 and a 12 month high of $129.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 2,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.60, for a total value of $199,200.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,244,386.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, COO Matthew E. Korenberg sold 11,389 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.61, for a total transaction of $1,202,792.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 49,510 shares in the company, valued at $5,228,751.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 2,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.60, for a total transaction of $199,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,244,386.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 33,368 shares of company stock worth $3,458,560. 5.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $329,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 55.9% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 26,963 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,699,000 after buying an additional 9,667 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.2% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 15,084 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,510,000 after buying an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 79.4% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,022 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,403,000 after buying an additional 6,206 shares during the period. Finally, Lisanti Capital Growth LLC bought a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at $2,481,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

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.