Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Company Overview

Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company that acquires, develops and out-licenses proprietary technologies designed to help pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies discover and develop novel medicines. Operating primarily through its research services and royalty-generating businesses, Ligand focuses on building a diversified portfolio of technology platforms and partnering with industry leaders to advance therapeutic candidates across multiple disease areas.

The company’s product offerings center around several core platforms. Captisol® is a chemically modified cyclodextrin used to improve the solubility, stability and delivery of small-molecule drug candidates. Ligand’s research services portfolio includes antibody discovery and optimization through its OmniAb™ platform, as well as absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion (ADME) testing services provided by its Cyprotex and Absorption Systems subsidiaries. Together, these technologies and services support early- and late-stage drug development programs for a broad range of partners worldwide.

Founded in 1987 and headquartered in San Diego, California, Ligand has grown through strategic acquisitions and collaborations, establishing a global footprint that spans North America, Europe and Asia. The company’s leadership team is led by President and Chief Executive Officer John L. Higgins, whose experience in drug development and corporate transactions has guided Ligand’s transformation into a technology-focused partner for the biopharmaceutical industry. Ligand continues to seek new alliances and in-licensing opportunities aimed at expanding its platform capabilities and royalty revenue streams.

Key Stats

• Today's Range: $278.28 to $287.90
• 50-Day Range: $262.17 to $322.61
• 52-Week Range: $158.13 to $326.63
• Volume: 197,405 shs
• Average Volume: 257,929 shs
• Market Capitalization: $5.62 billion
• P/E Ratio: 30.13
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Price Target: $335.75
• Consensus Rating: Buy

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Analysis - MarketRank™

Ligand Pharmaceuticals scored higher than 78% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 133rd out of 917 stocks in the healthcare sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation.

Analyst's Opinion

• Score: 4.0 / 5
• Analyst Rating: Buy

Consensus Rating

Ligand Pharmaceuticals has received a consensus rating of Buy. The company's average rating score is 3.00, and is based on no strong buy ratings, 9 buy ratings, no hold ratings, and no sell ratings.

Upside Potential

Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a consensus price target of $335.75, representing about 19.2% upside from its current price of $281.72.

Amount of Analyst Coverage

Ligand Pharmaceuticals has been the subject of 8 research reports in the past 90 days, demonstrating strong analyst interest in this stock.

Earnings and Valuation

• Score: 3.1 / 5
• Proj. Earnings Growth: 59.81%

Earnings Growth

Earnings for Ligand Pharmaceuticals are expected to grow by 59.81% in the coming year, from $5.30 to $8.47 per share.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the Market

The P/E ratio of Ligand Pharmaceuticals is 30.13, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 39.15.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. Sector

The P/E ratio of Ligand Pharmaceuticals is 30.13, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the Healthcare sector average P/E ratio of about 270.96.

Price to Earnings Growth Ratio

Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a PEG Ratio of 2.24. PEG Ratios above 1 indicate that a company could be overvalued.

Price to Book Value per Share Ratio

Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a P/B Ratio of 5.81. P/B Ratios above 3 indicate that a company could be overvalued with respect to its assets and liabilities.

Short Interest

• Score: 1.0 / 5
• Short Interest Level: Bearish

Percentage of Shares Shorted

13.01% of the float of Ligand Pharmaceuticals has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 8.76.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Ligand Pharmaceuticals has recently increased by 12.84%, indicating that investor sentiment is decreasing significantly.

Dividend

• Score: 0.0 / 5
• Dividend Strength: N/A

Dividend Yield

Ligand Pharmaceuticals does not currently pay a dividend.

Dividend Growth

Ligand Pharmaceuticals does not have a long track record of dividend growth.

News and Social Media

• Score: 1.6 / 5
• News Sentiment: 0.56

News Sentiment

Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a news sentiment score of 0.56. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This is a lower news sentiment than the 0.68 average news sentiment score of Healthcare companies.

News Coverage This Week

MarketBeat has tracked 4 news articles for Ligand Pharmaceuticals this week, compared to 5 articles on an average week.

Search Interest

Only 5 people have searched for LGND on MarketBeat in the last 30 days. This is a decrease of -44% compared to the previous 30 days.

MarketBeat Follows

Only 3 people have added Ligand Pharmaceuticals to their MarketBeat watchlist in the last 30 days. This is a decrease of -50% compared to the previous 30 days.

Company Ownership

• Score: 1.6 / 5
• Insider Trading: Selling Shares

Insider Buying vs. Insider Selling

In the past three months, Ligand Pharmaceuticals insiders have sold more of their company's stock than they have bought. Specifically, they have bought $0.00 in company stock and sold $20,075,721.00 in company stock.

Percentage Held by Insiders

5.60% of the stock of Ligand Pharmaceuticals is held by insiders.

Percentage Held by Institutions

91.28% of the stock of Ligand Pharmaceuticals is held by institutions. High institutional ownership can be a signal of strong market trust in this company.

Company Calendar

• Last Earnings: 8/06/2026
• Today: 8/26/2026
• 17th Annual Midwest IDEAS Conference: 8/26/2026
• Next Earnings (Estimated): 11/05/2026
• Fiscal Year End: 12/31/2026

Industry, Sector and Symbol

• Stock Exchange: NASDAQ
• Sector: Healthcare
• Industry: Biotechnology
• Sub-Industry: Biotechnology
• Current Symbol: NASDAQ:LGND
• CIK: 886163
• Web: www.ligand.com
• Phone: (858) 550-7500
• Fax: 858-550-1826
• Employees: 80
• Year Founded: 1987

Price Target and Rating

• Average Price Target for Ligand Pharmaceuticals: $335.75
• High Price Target: $388.00
• Low Price Target: $220.00
• Potential Upside/Downside: +19.2%
• Consensus Rating: Buy
• Rating Score (0-4): 3.00
• Research Coverage: 9 Analysts

Profitability

• EPS (Trailing Twelve Months): $9.35
• Trailing P/E Ratio: 30.13
• Forward P/E Ratio: 53.15
• P/E Growth: 2.24
• Net Income: $124.45 million
• Net Margins: 67.88%
• Pretax Margin: 81.90%
• Return on Equity: 20.06%
• Return on Assets: 11.68%

Debt

• Debt-to-Equity Ratio: 1.16
• Current Ratio: 31.18
• Quick Ratio: 30.96

Sales & Book Value

• Annual Sales: $268.09 million
• Price / Sales: 20.95
• Cash Flow: $7.90 per share
• Price / Cash Flow: 35.68
• Book Value: $48.53 per share
• Price / Book: 5.81

Miscellaneous

• Outstanding Shares: 19,940,000
• Free Float: 18,820,000
• Market Cap: $5.62 billion
• Optionable: Optionable
• Beta: 1.13