Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND Shares Purchased by Chicago Capital LLC

Key Points

• Chicago Capital LLC has increased its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.1%, now holding 571,825 shares valued at approximately $65 million.
• Multiple analysts have upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals, with price targets increased to as high as $206, reflecting a strong consensus "buy" rating.
• Recent insider trading involved a significant sale by Director Jason Aryeh of 10,000 shares, reducing his position by 12.61% and highlighting notable insider activity.

Chicago Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 571,825 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 17,308 shares during the quarter. Ligand Pharmaceuticals accounts for 1.6% of Chicago Capital LLC's holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Chicago Capital LLC owned about 2.96% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $65,005,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of LGND. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 26.5% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 50,401 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $5,400,000 after purchasing an additional 10,563 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $286,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 17,612.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 62,348 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $6,555,000 after purchasing an additional 61,996 shares in the last quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 12.3% during the 1st quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,463 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $371,000 after acquiring an additional 380 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 642,712 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $67,575,000 after acquiring an additional 21,230 shares in the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LGND has been the subject of several analyst reports. Benchmark upped their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. HC Wainwright upped their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $157.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped 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. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $176.50.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director Jason Aryeh sold 10,000 shares of the company'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 $11,835,254.09. This represents a 12.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.26, for a total value of $75,775.42. Following the sale, the director directly owned 45,522 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,386,399.72. This represents a 1.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,868 shares of company stock valued at $1,962,213. 7.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ LGND opened at $173.13 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.39 billion, a PE ratio of -43.28 and a beta of 0.96. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $93.58 and a 52-week high of $173.35. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $155.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $125.57.

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

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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