Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Buys 146,311 Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 385,028.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 146,349 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 146,311 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $27,670,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $284,000. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 18.3% during the fourth quarter. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC now owns 8,520 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,611,000 after acquiring an additional 1,320 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $345,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 25.2% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 2,264 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $428,000 after acquiring an additional 456 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $224,000. Institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LGND opened at $207.78 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.20. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $98.89 and a 52 week high of $247.38. The company has a quick ratio of 20.95, a current ratio of 21.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $214.63 and a 200 day moving average of $202.23.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by ($0.21). The business had revenue of $51.72 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.10 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 55.95%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 5.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.35, for a total value of $1,031,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 36,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,607,918.15. The trade was a 11.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 2,034 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total transaction of $409,851.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 33,793 shares in the company, valued at $6,809,289.50. This represents a 5.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 37,949 shares of company stock valued at $8,014,056 over the last three months. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on LGND. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $244.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ligand Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $257.71.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Profile

Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company that acquires, develops and out-licenses proprietary technologies designed to help pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies discover and develop novel medicines. Operating primarily through its research services and royalty-generating businesses, Ligand focuses on building a diversified portfolio of technology platforms and partnering with industry leaders to advance therapeutic candidates across multiple disease areas.

The company’s product offerings center around several core platforms.