Insider Selling: Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Insider Sells 1,000 Shares of Stock

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) insider Andrew Reardon sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.00, for a total value of $104,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LGND traded up $1.81 during trading on Friday, hitting $105.99. 91,810 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 115,957. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $77.43 and a 1-year high of $129.90. The company has a market capitalization of $2.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.23 and a beta of 0.83. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $104.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $110.86.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $45.33 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 in the previous year, the firm earned $3.84 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at $789,000. Ellsworth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at $765,000. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 176.2% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 36,922 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,882,000 after buying an additional 23,553 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 9.8% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 55,327 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $5,817,000 after buying an additional 4,926 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 68,792 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $7,233,000 after purchasing an additional 637 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.