Advisor Resource Council Purchases Shares of 22,425 Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Advisor Resource Council bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 22,425 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $2,244,000. Advisor Resource Council owned approximately 0.12% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 119.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 406 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $43,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 825.4% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 546 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 487 shares in the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on LGND. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $143.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $146.14.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Octavio Espinoza acquired 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $104.06 per share, with a total value of $156,090.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,906,603.92. This trade represents a 5.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.54, for a total value of $57,270.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 32,403 shares in the company, valued at $3,711,439.62. This trade represents a 1.52% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 7.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 2.8%

Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $3.25 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $118.22. The company had a trading volume of 135,249 shares, compared to its average volume of 117,420. The stock has a market cap of $2.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.60 and a beta of 0.83. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $77.53 and a 1-year high of $129.90. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $106.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $110.17.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.10. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 7.83% and a negative net margin of 73.07%. The firm had revenue of $45.33 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $37.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.84 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals 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.