Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Hits New 1-Year High - Here's Why

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $143.13 and last traded at $141.12, with a volume of 427636 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $139.10.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on LGND shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $143.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $147.17.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $2.58 billion, a P/E ratio of -18.74 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $114.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $111.74.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 7.83% and a negative net margin of 73.07%. The business had revenue of $45.33 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.84 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Todd C. Davis acquired 9,510 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $105.20 per share, for a total transaction of $1,000,452.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 161,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,961,816.80. This trade represents a 6.27% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John W. Kozarich sold 934 shares of the firm'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 transaction of $116,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 46,456 shares in the company, valued at $5,807,000. The trade was a 1.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,934 shares of company stock worth $335,060. 7.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWC Advisors LLC. increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.6% during the second quarter. CWC Advisors LLC. now owns 3,518 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $400,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 14.1% during the second quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 745 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Woodstock Corp increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 0.3% during the second quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 29,497 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,353,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Corebridge Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.2% during the first quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. now owns 9,384 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $987,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% during the first quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,407 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $568,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.