Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Stock Rated "Buy" by Wall Street Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts unanimously rate Ligand Pharmaceuticals “Buy.” All ten analysts covering the stock assign a buy rating, with an average 12-month price target of $337.89 versus the reported share price of $307.82.
• Ligand exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.37 in EPS versus the $1.97 consensus and revenue of $63.69 million, up 33.8% year over year. The company also issued fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $9.00–$9.50.
• Insiders have sold shares recently, including approximately $16.1 million in insider stock sales over the past 90 days, while institutional investors continue to hold a substantial 91.28% stake in the company.

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Buy" from the ten analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $337.89.

Several research firms have recently issued reports on LGND. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $340.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $390.00 to $397.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $266.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, August 14th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $330.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Barclays started coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, September 25th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $345.00 target price on the stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of LGND opened at $307.82 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $293.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $271.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.92, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.14. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $175.89 and a 52 week high of $326.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 30.96 and a current ratio of 31.18.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $63.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $61.30 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 67.88% and a return on equity of 20.06%. The company's revenue was up 33.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.60 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.000-9.500 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 5.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director Martine Zimmermann sold 1,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.00, for a total transaction of $342,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,897 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,110,645. This trade represents a 23.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.09, for a total transaction of $1,430,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 36,514 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,446,290.26. The trade was a 12.04% 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 54,979 shares of company stock valued at $16,068,898. Insiders own 5.60% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.5% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,009,891 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $201,623,000 after purchasing an additional 14,491 shares in the last quarter. Ranger Investment Management L.P. bought a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $81,424,000. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 283,567 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $56,614,000 after acquiring an additional 3,940 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $41,429,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 31.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 157,865 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $31,518,000 after acquiring an additional 37,696 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.28% of the company's stock.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated NASDAQ: LGND is a biopharmaceutical company that develops, acquires and licenses technologies intended to improve the development and commercialization of medicines. Rather than operating primarily as a traditional drug manufacturer, Ligand generally works with pharmaceutical and biotechnology partners, receiving licensing payments, royalties and other consideration tied to partnered products.

The company's principal technology is Captisol, a modified cyclodextrin designed to improve the solubility, stability and delivery of certain active pharmaceutical ingredients.

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