Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New Investment in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 21,830 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $2,339,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.12% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 43,456 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $4,349,000 after purchasing an additional 7,247 shares in the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 7,193 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $771,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 397,700 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $42,614,000 after buying an additional 24,921 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 10,739 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,150,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 9,100 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $975,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.03, for a total transaction of $575,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,879 shares in the company, valued at $2,171,651.37. This represents a 20.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $0.24 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $109.39. The company's stock had a trading volume of 81,140 shares, compared to its average volume of 119,419. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $72.57 and a one year high of $129.90. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $107.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $112.48. The stock has a market cap of $2.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.58 and a beta of 1.07.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $143.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $146.43.

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.