Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Has $310,000 Position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Key Points

• Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. has reduced its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 87.6% in the first quarter, now holding only 2,944 shares valued at $310,000.
• Multiple hedge funds have increased their holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals, with Arizona State Retirement System raising its stake by 2.1% this quarter.
• Wall Street analysts have upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals, with Oppenheimer raising its target price from $145 to $162 and Royal Bank Of Canada lifting it to $185, indicating positive sentiment towards the stock.

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. trimmed its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 87.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,944 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 20,819 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.'s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $310,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 29.7% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 11,220 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,202,000 after purchasing an additional 2,570 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 4,598 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $493,000 after buying an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,339,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its stake 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. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,811 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $194,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.88, for a total transaction of $61,587.96. Following the transaction, the director owned 45,989 shares in the company, valued at $6,065,029.32. This trade represents a 1.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 500 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.08, for a total transaction of $57,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 31,903 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,639,494.24. This trade represents a 1.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,401 shares of company stock worth $292,648 in the last 90 days. 7.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $1.77 during trading on Friday, reaching $159.08. 234,074 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 310,662. The company's 50-day moving average is $131.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $116.35. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $93.58 and a 52-week high of $161.93. The firm has a market cap of $3.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -39.77 and a beta of 0.85.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on LGND. Wall Street Zen raised Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $157.00.

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.