Townsquare Capital LLC Has $3.87 Million Stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Key Points

• Townsquare Capital LLC increased its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.5% during the first quarter, now holding 36,774 shares valued at approximately $3.87 million.
• Ligand Pharmaceuticals reported $1.60 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate and showing a 14.7% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The stock has received several upgrades from analysts, with a consensus target price now at $157.00, suggesting confidence in its growth potential.

Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 6.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,774 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,235 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC owned about 0.19% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $3,866,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of LGND. Driehaus Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 70.0% in the fourth quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 162,771 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $17,441,000 after acquiring an additional 67,033 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 17,612.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 62,348 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $6,555,000 after acquiring an additional 61,996 shares during the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP boosted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 190.2% during the first quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 68,299 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $7,181,000 after purchasing an additional 44,760 shares during the period. Advisor Resource Council acquired a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth $2,244,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $2,339,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:LGND traded down $2.22 during trading on Thursday, hitting $153.79. The stock had a trading volume of 203,325 shares, compared to its average volume of 147,246. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $125.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -38.45 and a beta of 0.85. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $93.58 and a 12-month high of $157.54.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.87 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.40 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $157.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 934 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total value of $116,750.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 46,456 shares in the company, valued at $5,807,000. This represents a 1.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.08, for a total transaction of $57,040.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 31,903 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,639,494.24. This trade represents a 1.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,401 shares of company stock worth $292,648 in the last 90 days. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.