Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND Shares Purchased by GW&K Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• GW&K Investment Management boosted its Ligand Pharmaceuticals stake by 265.4% in the fourth quarter, ending with 117,432 shares worth about $22.2 million.
• Insiders have been selling stock: Andrew Reardon and director John W. Kozarich both trimmed their holdings, and insiders sold 18,968 shares worth $4.16 million over the past 90 days.
• Analysts remain largely bullish on LGND, with seven Buy ratings and one Hold; the consensus price target is $257.71, above the recent share price of $248.24.

GW&K Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 265.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 117,432 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 85,297 shares during the period. GW&K Investment Management LLC owned 0.60% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $22,204,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in LGND. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 86.3% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 31.6% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 271 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $52,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 17,050.0% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 343 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 341 shares during the period. 91.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.06, for a total transaction of $1,135,300.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 41,382 shares in the company, valued at $9,396,196.92. This trade represents a 10.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John W. Kozarich sold 1,575 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.50, for a total value of $352,012.50. Following the sale, the director owned 41,786 shares in the company, valued at $9,339,171. This trade represents a 3.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 18,968 shares of company stock worth $4,163,441 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of LGND opened at $248.24 on Thursday. The business's 50-day moving average is $223.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $206.01. The company has a market capitalization of $4.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 20.95 and a current ratio of 21.28. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $110.00 and a fifty-two week high of $257.19.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.84 by ($0.21). Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 55.95% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The business had revenue of $51.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.10 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.33 earnings per share. Ligand Pharmaceuticals's revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on LGND shares. Citigroup upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $252.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. They set a "buy" rating and a $244.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, HC Wainwright increased their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ligand Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $257.71.

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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