Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND Shares Sold by Penn Capital Management Company LLC

Key Points

• Penn Capital Management reduced its Ligand Pharmaceuticals stake by 7.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 8,434 shares and leaving it with 98,848 shares valued at about $18.7 million.
• Ligand Pharmaceuticals beat expectations on revenue growth year over year but missed analyst estimates in its latest quarterly report, posting $1.63 EPS versus $1.84 expected and $51.72 million in revenue versus $59.10 million expected.
• Despite recent insider selling and mixed earnings, analysts remain generally constructive on LGND, with seven Buy ratings and one Hold and a consensus price target of $257.71.

Penn Capital Management Company LLC lowered its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 7.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 98,848 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 8,434 shares during the quarter. Ligand Pharmaceuticals comprises 1.5% of Penn Capital Management Company LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Penn Capital Management Company LLC owned about 0.50% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $18,710,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 108,926 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $19,295,000 after buying an additional 2,860 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 16.6% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 31,915 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $5,653,000 after buying an additional 4,538 shares in the last quarter. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 178.0% in the third quarter. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC now owns 29,677 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $5,257,000 after buying an additional 19,002 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 11.7% in the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 59,131 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $10,474,000 after buying an additional 6,209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clark Capital Management Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 16.7% in the third quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 82,991 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $14,701,000 after buying an additional 11,858 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of LGND opened at $235.33 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.20. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $98.89 and a one year high of $247.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 20.95 and a current ratio of 21.28. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $216.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $203.53.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.84 by ($0.21). The business had revenue of $51.72 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $59.10 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 55.95% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.33 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 5.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 1,575 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.50, for a total value of $352,012.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 41,786 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,339,171. This represents a 3.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 13,423 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.83, for a total value of $2,762,856.09. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 21,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,458,689.46. This represents a 38.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 37,949 shares of company stock worth $8,014,056. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LGND has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. HC Wainwright increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Bank of America started coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $244.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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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