John W. Kozarich Sells 467 Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Stock

Key Points

• John W. Kozarich, a director of Ligand Pharmaceuticals, sold 467 shares at an average price of $131.88, reducing his stake in the company by 1.01%.
• Ligand Pharmaceuticals' stock is currently trading at $135.15, down 0.2%, with a 12-month high of $143.13 and a 12-month low of $92.04.
• Analyst ratings for Ligand Pharmaceuticals show one sell and six buy ratings, with a consensus target price of $150.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.88, for a total transaction of $61,587.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 45,989 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,065,029.32. This trade represents a 1.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ LGND traded up $3.84 during trading on Friday, reaching $150.16. 118,848 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 128,041. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $121.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $113.56. The stock has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.09 and a beta of 0.85. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $93.58 and a 1 year high of $150.98.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $150.00.

Institutional Trading of Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 102,874 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $10,816,000 after acquiring an additional 3,284 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 68.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 593 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 323.6% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,808 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $716,000 after purchasing an additional 5,201 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 13.7% during the first quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 6,658 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $700,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,800,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% 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.