New York State Common Retirement Fund Has $10.47 Million Stock Holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 7.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 99,537 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,119 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.52% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $10,465,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 102,874 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $10,816,000 after buying an additional 3,284 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 68.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 593 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 397,700 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $42,614,000 after acquiring an additional 24,921 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 13.7% during the 1st quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 6,658 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $700,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 323.6% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,808 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $716,000 after purchasing an additional 5,201 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

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 shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at $5,807,000. The trade was a 1.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Todd C. Davis acquired 9,510 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $105.20 per share, with a total value of $1,000,452.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 161,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,961,816.80. The trade was a 6.27% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,934 shares of company stock valued at $335,060. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.1%

LGND stock traded up $1.53 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $139.10. The company had a trading volume of 347,058 shares, compared to its average volume of 119,529. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $112.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $111.02. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $90.29 and a fifty-two week high of $139.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.68 billion, a PE ratio of -19.54 and a beta of 0.84.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.10. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 7.83% and a negative net margin of 73.07%. The firm had revenue of $45.33 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $37.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.84 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LGND has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $143.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $147.17.

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.