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

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) had its price target raised by equities researchers at Benchmark from $175.00 to $220.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the biotechnology company’s stock. Benchmark’s target price points to a potential upside of 8.65% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on LGND. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $190.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, HC Wainwright raised their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $206.00 to $231.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $198.17.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LGND opened at $202.48 on Friday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $93.58 and a 52-week high of $211.91. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $177.98 and a 200 day moving average of $141.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -50.62 and a beta of 0.91.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The biotechnology company reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $1.13. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 9.21% and a negative net margin of 40.44%.The business had revenue of $86.89 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.71 million. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 123.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.400-7.650 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.05, for a total value of $89,220.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 44,588 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,518,537.40. The trade was a 1.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jason Aryeh sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total value of $1,708,100.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 69,289 shares in the company, valued at $11,835,254.09. This trade represents a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,401 shares of company stock worth $1,956,894. 7.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.9% during the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,014 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $357,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 575 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $102,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 31.6% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 271 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank grew its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 5,446 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $619,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWC Advisors LLC. increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.6% in the second quarter. CWC Advisors LLC. now owns 3,518 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $400,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. 91.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.