Stephens Investment Management Group LLC Sells 53,502 Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC lessened its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 9.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 501,040 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 53,502 shares during the quarter. Ligand Pharmaceuticals makes up 1.2% of Stephens Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $94,732,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 108,926 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $19,295,000 after buying an additional 2,860 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 31,915 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $5,653,000 after buying an additional 4,538 shares in the last quarter. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 178.0% during the 3rd quarter. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC now owns 29,677 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $5,257,000 after buying an additional 19,002 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 59.5% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 541,845 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $95,982,000 after buying an additional 202,103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 59,131 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $10,474,000 after buying an additional 6,209 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 2.6%

NASDAQ:LGND opened at $213.21 on Friday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $98.89 and a one year high of $247.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 20.95 and a current ratio of 21.28. The firm has a market cap of $4.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.20. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $214.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $201.85.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.84 by ($0.21). Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 55.95% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The business had revenue of $51.72 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.10 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 5.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HC Wainwright lifted their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $257.71.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 2,034 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total transaction of $409,851.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 33,793 shares in the company, valued at $6,809,289.50. The trade was a 5.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.35, for a total transaction of $1,031,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 36,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,607,918.15. This trade represents a 11.94% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 37,949 shares of company stock worth $8,014,056 in the last quarter. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company 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.