Q1 2025 EPS Estimates for Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Boosted by Zacks Research

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) - Research analysts at Zacks Research raised their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report issued on Tuesday, April 2nd. Zacks Research analyst S. Ganoria now anticipates that the biotechnology company will earn $0.98 per share for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $0.97. The consensus estimate for Ligand Pharmaceuticals' current full-year earnings is $3.41 per share.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on LGND. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, December 13th. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $144.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $116.33.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 4.3 %

LGND stock traded up $3.25 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $77.98. The stock had a trading volume of 311,742 shares, compared to its average volume of 159,267. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $74.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.36 and a beta of 1.01. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $49.24 and a 52 week high of $94.57.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The biotechnology company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.55. The company had revenue of $28.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.54 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 11.98% and a net margin of 37.80%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 41.0% in the 4th quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 659,434 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $47,097,000 after acquiring an additional 191,870 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $9,690,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 59.1% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 325,727 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $23,263,000 after purchasing an additional 121,049 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 2,906,159 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $209,534,000 after buying an additional 67,497 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 132.8% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 92,863 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $6,203,000 after buying an additional 52,980 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 1,893 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.30, for a total transaction of $140,649.90. Following the sale, the director now owns 28,926 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,149,201.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 10.40% 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.