Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. Invests $67,000 in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 790 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $67,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 21.7% during the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 758 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $107,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 32.4% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,840 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $131,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LGND has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Craig Hallum raised 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. Benchmark raised their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $144.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of LGND opened at $97.37 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.75 billion, a PE ratio of 18.83 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $102.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $88.31. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $49.24 and a 12-month high of $112.13.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.39, for a total transaction of $159,585.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,397,392.26. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.39, for a total transaction of $159,585.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,397,392.26. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Todd C. Davis acquired 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $97.39 per share, for a total transaction of $243,475.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 123,010 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,979,943.90. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 51,613 shares of company stock worth $5,255,692. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.