Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND Position Boosted by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 41.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 135,365 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 39,765 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.70% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $14,232,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at $32,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 825.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 546 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 487 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 68.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 593 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 317.5% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 810 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $87,000 after buying an additional 616 shares during the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.8%

Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $2.7710 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $160.0810. The company's stock had a trading volume of 54,780 shares, compared to its average volume of 147,203. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $130.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $116.07. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $93.58 and a 12 month high of $161.93. The company has a market capitalization of $3.14 billion, a PE ratio of -40.03 and a beta of 0.85.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LGND has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of 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 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $157.00.

Insider Activity

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.88, for a total transaction of $61,587.96. Following the sale, the director owned 45,989 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,065,029.32. The trade was a 1.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.08, for a total value of $57,040.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 31,903 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,639,494.24. The trade was a 1.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,401 shares of company stock worth $292,648. Corporate insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company 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.