Stephens Investment Management Group LLC Sells 2,409 Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Key Points

• Stephens Investment Management Group LLC decreased its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 0.4%, selling 2,409 shares and retaining approximately 3.13% ownership valued at $68.76 million.
• Ligand Pharmaceuticals reported a quarterly EPS of $1.60, exceeding estimates, with revenue rising 14.7% year-over-year to $47.63 million.
• Several brokerages have upgraded Ligand's rating, with a consensus target price now set at $176.50 and six analysts rating the stock as a "Buy."

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC reduced its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 0.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 604,813 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 2,409 shares during the quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC owned approximately 3.13% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $68,755,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 7.5% during the 2nd quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 9,582 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,089,000 after buying an additional 667 shares during the last quarter. Tweedy Browne Co LLC bought a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $357,000. Equitable Trust Co. raised its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 37.7% during the 2nd quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 6,245 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $710,000 after buying an additional 1,710 shares during the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 7,282 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $828,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aberdeen Group plc raised its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 229,230 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $26,059,000 after buying an additional 12,989 shares during the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of LGND stock opened at $186.66 on Wednesday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $93.58 and a one year high of $187.76. The company's 50-day moving average is $169.13 and its 200 day moving average is $133.71. The company has a market capitalization of $3.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -46.67 and a beta of 0.95.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $47.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.87 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals's revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.700-7.000 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on LGND. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Benchmark boosted their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $167.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $176.50.

Insider Activity

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director Jason Aryeh sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total transaction of $1,708,100.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 69,289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,835,254.09. This represents a 12.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.44, for a total transaction of $83,798.48. Following the transaction, the director owned 45,055 shares in the company, valued at $8,084,669.20. This represents a 1.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,401 shares of company stock worth $1,929,262 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

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.

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