Geode Capital Management LLC Increases Stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 493,589 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 19,400 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $93,336,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LGND. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 25.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 6,120 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $644,000 after buying an additional 1,256 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth approximately $344,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 8.2% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 10,660 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,121,000 after buying an additional 809 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 9.8% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 55,327 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $5,817,000 after buying an additional 4,926 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 176.2% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 36,922 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $3,882,000 after buying an additional 23,553 shares during the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 1,575 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.50, for a total value of $352,012.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 41,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,339,171. This represents a 3.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 3,057 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total value of $687,825.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 21,010 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,727,250. The trade was a 12.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 22,025 shares of company stock valued at $4,851,266 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ LGND opened at $237.00 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $4.75 billion, a PE ratio of 32.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 20.95, a current ratio of 21.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $103.43 and a 52-week high of $247.38. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $220.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $205.16.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by ($0.21). The firm had revenue of $51.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.10 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 55.95% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on LGND shares. Weiss Ratings lowered Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Bank of America started coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $244.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Citigroup upped their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $252.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.