Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Trading 7.3% Higher Following Earnings Beat

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) traded up 7.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $79.19 and last traded at $78.60. 40,081 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 155,450 shares. The stock had previously closed at $73.22.

The biotechnology company reported $3.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by $3.01. The business had revenue of $30.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.92 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 11.98% and a net margin of 37.80%. Ligand Pharmaceuticals's revenue for the quarter was down 29.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.96 earnings per share.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $144.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $95.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, April 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $116.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 1,893 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 28,926 shares in the company, valued at $2,149,201.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 10.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% during the first quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 189,247 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $13,834,000 after purchasing an additional 1,905 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 8.5% during the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 4,627 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $338,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares during the last quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 40.7% during the first quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 48,331 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $3,533,000 after purchasing an additional 13,984 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 155.3% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 73,161 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $5,348,000 after purchasing an additional 44,499 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 224.1% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 35,841 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $2,620,000 after purchasing an additional 24,784 shares during the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $74.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.13. The company has a market capitalization of $1.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.22 and a beta of 1.01.

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.