Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Shares Acquired by UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 26.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,401 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 10,563 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.27% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $5,400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Yousif Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 7,193 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $771,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 758 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 2,862 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $307,000 after buying an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,297 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $568,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 4,034 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $432,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LGND traded up $1.45 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $103.80. 129,295 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 116,340. The company's 50-day moving average is $104.39 and its 200-day moving average is $111.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.35 and a beta of 0.87. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $77.43 and a 52-week high of $129.90.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.10. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 29.68% and a return on equity of 4.95%. The company had revenue of $45.33 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $37.84 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.84 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.00, for a total transaction of $104,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 32,903 shares in the company, valued at $3,421,912. This trade represents a 2.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Todd C. Davis acquired 9,510 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $105.20 per share, for a total transaction of $1,000,452.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 161,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,961,816.80. This trade represents a 6.27% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 5.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on LGND shares. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $143.00 target price for the company. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ligand Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $146.14.

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.