Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Stock Position Raised by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 20.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,413 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 907 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $580,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 15,084 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,510,000 after purchasing an additional 329 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $329,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 163,924 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $16,407,000 after buying an additional 8,584 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 550.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 12,749 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,276,000 after buying an additional 10,789 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 4.0% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 38,747 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,878,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.9 %

LGND stock opened at $107.62 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $114.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $112.13. The company has a market capitalization of $2.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.88 and a beta of 1.12. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $67.72 and a 52 week high of $129.90.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays lifted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. StockNews.com upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $147.00.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 5,000 shares of the 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,171,651.37. This trade represents a 20.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

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.