Acuitas Investments LLC Has $2.26 Million Stock Holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Key Points

• Acuitas Investments LLC reduced its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 27.7% in the second quarter, now owning approximately $2.26 million worth of the stock.
• Ligand Pharmaceuticals reported earnings of $1.60 EPS, exceeding analyst expectations, with revenue of $47.63 million, a 14.7% increase year-over-year.
• Analysts have generally positive views on Ligand Pharmaceuticals, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a target price of $176.50.

Acuitas Investments LLC lessened its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 27.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 19,897 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 7,615 shares during the quarter. Ligand Pharmaceuticals accounts for approximately 1.8% of Acuitas Investments LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Acuitas Investments LLC owned about 0.10% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $2,262,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. CWC Advisors LLC. boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. CWC Advisors LLC. now owns 3,518 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $400,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 14.1% during the 2nd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 745 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Woodstock Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 29,497 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,353,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. now owns 9,384 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $987,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,407 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $568,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $185.25 on Friday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $93.58 and a one year high of $187.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -46.31 and a beta of 0.95. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $170.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $134.66.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $47.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.87 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 9.21% and a negative net margin of 40.44%.The firm's revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.40 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.700-7.000 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on LGND shares. Wall Street Zen raised Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Benchmark lifted their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $157.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $167.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $176.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director Jason Aryeh sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total transaction of $1,708,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 69,289 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,835,254.09. The trade was a 12.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.44, for a total value of $83,798.48. Following the sale, the director directly owned 45,055 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,084,669.20. This represents a 1.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,401 shares of company stock valued at $1,929,262 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

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.

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