Strs Ohio Makes New Investment in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Key Points

• Strs Ohio invested approximately $789,000 in Ligand Pharmaceuticals, acquiring 7,500 shares during the first quarter.
• Ligand Pharmaceuticals reported earnings per share of $1.60 for the quarter, beating analysts' expectations of $1.54, with revenue increasing by 14.7% year-over-year.
• Research analysts have shown positive sentiment toward Ligand, with Oppenheimer raising their target price from $167.00 to $190.00 and multiple firms assigning a "buy" rating.

Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 7,500 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $789,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of LGND. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at $16,526,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 17,612.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 62,348 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $6,555,000 after acquiring an additional 61,996 shares in the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 190.2% in the first quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 68,299 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $7,181,000 after acquiring an additional 44,760 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth about $4,657,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 41.6% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 135,365 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $14,232,000 after buying an additional 39,765 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

LGND stock traded up $5.55 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $172.06. The stock had a trading volume of 76,890 shares, compared to its average volume of 156,476. The firm has a market cap of $3.37 billion, a PE ratio of -42.95 and a beta of 0.96. The company's 50-day moving average price is $150.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $122.98. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $93.58 and a 12-month high of $172.13.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $47.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.87 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 40.44% and a negative return on equity of 9.21%. Ligand Pharmaceuticals's revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.40 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.700-7.000 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on LGND shares. HC Wainwright increased their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $157.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Benchmark increased their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $167.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $176.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 934 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,868 shares of company stock worth $254,113. Insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

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.