Matthew E. Korenberg Sells 9,772 Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Stock

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) COO Matthew E. Korenberg sold 9,772 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.22, for a total transaction of $989,121.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 50,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,139,647.94. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of LGND traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $99.54. 63,578 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 142,282. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $102.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $87.80. The company has a market cap of $1.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.28 and a beta of 1.01. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $49.24 and a 52-week high of $112.13.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.34. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 29.69% and a return on equity of 7.91%. The firm had revenue of $41.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.04 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.10 earnings per share. Ligand Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 57.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 3.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LGND has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Craig Hallum increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $144.00 price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Benchmark boosted their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 21.7% during the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 758 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $67,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $107,000. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.