Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Barclays Analyst Says

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) had its target price lifted by Barclays from $125.00 to $150.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the biotechnology company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on LGND. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Benchmark upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $157.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $143.17.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LGND opened at $123.47 on Friday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $55.02 and a one year high of $129.90. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $105.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $95.94. The company has a market capitalization of $2.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.19 and a beta of 0.99.

Insider Transactions at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, COO Matthew E. Korenberg sold 1,157 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.54, for a total value of $122,109.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 67,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,093,448.94. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Matthew E. Korenberg sold 1,157 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.54, for a total transaction of $122,109.78. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 67,211 shares in the company, valued at $7,093,448.94. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Matthew E. Korenberg sold 11,389 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.61, for a total value of $1,202,792.29. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 49,510 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,228,751.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,368 shares of company stock valued at $3,458,560 over the last three months. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,884,112 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $137,729,000 after purchasing an additional 7,598 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.7% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 708,624 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $59,707,000 after purchasing an additional 44,543 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 604,038 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $60,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,414 shares during the last quarter. Chicago Capital LLC boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 545,821 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $54,631,000 after purchasing an additional 30,875 shares during the period. Finally, Rice Hall James & Associates LLC grew its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 312,879 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $31,316,000 after buying an additional 20,404 shares in the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.