Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Shares Sold by Chicago Capital LLC

Chicago Capital LLC lowered its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 35.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 231,511 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 128,834 shares during the period. Chicago Capital LLC owned 1.33% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $16,535,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 95.1% in the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 441 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 38.0% in the 1st quarter. FMR LLC now owns 566 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 240.4% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,103 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 779 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LGND has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, December 13th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $144.00 price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $116.33.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $0.39 on Tuesday, reaching $73.21. 122,828 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 157,754. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $49.24 and a 52 week high of $94.57. The company has a 50 day moving average of $74.17 and a 200 day moving average of $66.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.30 billion, a PE ratio of 26.62 and a beta of 1.01.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.55. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 37.80% and a return on equity of 11.98%. The firm had revenue of $28.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.54 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 2.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 1,893 shares of the company's 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 sale, the director now directly owns 28,926 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,149,201.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 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.