Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.4%, selling 29,895 shares during the 1st quarter, resulting in ownership of approximately 2,055,732 shares valued at $216.14 million.
• Insider Andrew Reardon sold 500 shares at $114.08 each, while Director John W. Kozarich sold 934 shares at $125.00, indicating a trend of insider selling amidst fluctuating stock prices.
• Ligand Pharmaceuticals reported $1.60 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenue increasing by 14.7% year-over-year to $47.63 million.

Vanguard Group Inc. trimmed its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 1.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,055,732 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 29,895 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 10.66% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $216,140,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,407 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $568,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,575 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $376,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 2,516 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $265,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,811 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $194,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 4,598 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $493,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ:LGND traded down $0.29 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $158.79. 119,645 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 316,122. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $93.58 and a twelve month high of $161.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -39.70 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $132.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $116.64.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 934 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total transaction of $116,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 46,456 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,807,000. The trade was a 1.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.08, for a total value of $57,040.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 31,903 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,639,494.24. This trade represents a 1.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,401 shares of company stock valued at $292,648 in the last quarter. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on LGND. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $157.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.