First Trust Advisors LP Grows Holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors increased its Ligand Pharmaceuticals position by 16.2% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 80,401 shares worth approximately $16.1 million. Institutional investors collectively own 91.28% of LGND.
• Company insiders sold 35,698 shares worth about $9.0 million over the past 90 days, including sizable sales by insider Andrew Reardon and director John L. Lamattina.
• Ligand’s shares opened at $288.01 after declining 2.8%; the company’s latest quarterly results missed analyst expectations for both EPS and revenue, although revenue increased 14.1% year over year. Analysts remain broadly positive, with seven Buy ratings and an average price target of $319.

First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 16.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 80,401 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 11,181 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.40% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $16,052,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LGND. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 86.3% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $52,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 17,050.0% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 343 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1,040.0% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 342 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.28, for a total transaction of $1,566,400.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 41,514 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,005,505.92. This represents a 10.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John L. Lamattina sold 4,591 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.88, for a total value of $1,151,790.08. Following the transaction, the director owned 26,969 shares in the company, valued at $6,765,982.72. This trade represents a 14.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 35,698 shares of company stock worth $9,019,252. Corporate insiders own 5.60% of the company's stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.8%

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $288.01 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 20.95, a current ratio of 21.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market cap of $5.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.10. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $129.55 and a fifty-two week high of $326.63. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $276.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $230.73.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.84 by ($0.21). Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 55.95% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The firm had revenue of $51.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.10 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on LGND. HC Wainwright upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $266.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $255.00 to $332.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $387.00 price target on the stock. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $319.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company that acquires, develops and out-licenses proprietary technologies designed to help pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies discover and develop novel medicines. Operating primarily through its research services and royalty-generating businesses, Ligand focuses on building a diversified portfolio of technology platforms and partnering with industry leaders to advance therapeutic candidates across multiple disease areas.

The company's product offerings center around several core platforms.

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