Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Hits New 1-Year High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Ligand Pharmaceuticals recently reached a new 52-week high of $156.11, with a significant trading volume of 165,553 shares.
• Analysts have bullish outlooks for the company, with price targets raised as high as $185.00 and a consensus rating of "Buy".
• The company reported earnings of $1.60 per share, exceeding estimates, and achieved a 14.7% year-over-year revenue increase to $47.63 million.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $156.11 and last traded at $154.79, with a volume of 165553 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $147.01.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on LGND shares. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Ligand Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $157.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $126.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $114.80. The stock has a market cap of $3.01 billion, a PE ratio of -38.45 and a beta of 0.85.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.06. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 9.21% and a negative net margin of 40.44%. The firm had revenue of $47.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.87 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.40 EPS. The company's revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.08, for a total value of $57,040.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 31,903 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,639,494.24. This represents a 1.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John W. Kozarich sold 934 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total value of $116,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 46,456 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,807,000. The trade was a 1.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,401 shares of company stock worth $292,648 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

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

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company 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.