Analysts Set Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) PT at $146.14

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Buy" by the seven analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $146.14.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on LGND. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. StockNews.com downgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $143.00 target price for the company.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 2.4%

Shares of LGND traded down $2.47 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $102.45. 84,622 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 116,785. The stock has a market cap of $1.98 billion, a PE ratio of 40.82 and a beta of 0.87. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $105.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $112.09. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $77.43 and a 12 month high of $129.90.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last issued 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 return on equity of 4.95% and a net margin of 29.68%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.84 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CFO Octavio Espinoza acquired 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $104.06 per share, for a total transaction of $156,090.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,932 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,906,603.92. This trade represents a 5.67% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Todd C. Davis acquired 9,510 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The stock was bought at an average price of $105.20 per share, with a total value of $1,000,452.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 161,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,961,816.80. The trade was a 6.27% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 5.90% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 20.0% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 43,456 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $4,349,000 after acquiring an additional 7,247 shares in the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 7,193 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $771,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 397,700 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $42,614,000 after acquiring an additional 24,921 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 10,739 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,150,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 9,100 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $975,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. 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.