Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND Shares Sold by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Key Points

• Pictet Asset Management Holding SA trimmed its Ligand Pharmaceuticals stake by 5.7% in Q1, selling 3,649 shares and leaving it with 60,737 shares worth about $11.7 million.
• Ligand shares were trading up 2.4% at $319.55, near their 52-week high of $320.99, after the company reported mixed quarterly results with earnings and revenue both missing estimates.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with seven Buy ratings and one Hold; the consensus target price is $257.71 even as insiders recently sold shares and institutional ownership remains high at 91.28%.

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lowered its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 5.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 60,737 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 3,649 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned approximately 0.30% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $11,722,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at $52,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its stake 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 acquiring an additional 341 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 2.4%

NASDAQ LGND opened at $319.55 on Friday. 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 firm has a market cap of $6.40 billion, a PE ratio of 43.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 1.10. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $112.41 and a one year high of $320.99. The firm's fifty day moving average is $245.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $215.93.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.84 by ($0.21). Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 55.95%.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 company posted $1.33 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals's quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on LGND. Wall Street Zen lowered Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $252.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. HC Wainwright lifted 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. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $257.71.

Insider Activity

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director John L. Lamattina sold 4,591 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.88, for a total transaction of $1,151,790.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 26,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,765,982.72. This trade represents a 14.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jason Aryeh sold 4,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $1,125,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 102,580 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,645,000. The trade was a 4.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 30,698 shares of company stock worth $7,452,852 over the last quarter. 7.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

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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