Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 672,100 shares, a decline of 23.3% from the March 15th total of 876,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 162,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.1 days. Approximately 4.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.1 %

LGND traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $81.36. The company's stock had a trading volume of 171,376 shares, compared to its average volume of 190,073. The business's 50-day moving average price is $74.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $67.15. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $49.24 and a 12 month high of $94.57. The stock has a market cap of $1.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.59 and a beta of 1.01.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The biotechnology company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.55. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 37.80% and a return on equity of 11.98%. The company had revenue of $28.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $24.54 million. On average, analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 3.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LGND has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $95.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $144.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, February 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ligand Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $116.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 1,893 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.30, for a total transaction of $140,649.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 28,926 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,149,201.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 10.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 10.6% during the first quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 1,341 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $151,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 54.9% during the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 8,617 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $969,000 after acquiring an additional 3,053 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.3% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 46,027 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $5,178,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024 shares during the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% during the first quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 15,834 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,781,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 378,118 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $42,537,000 after acquiring an additional 5,450 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.