Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Lifted to Buy at StockNews.com

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND – Get Rating) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Friday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. TheStreet upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Thursday, May 4th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $101.67.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 3.9 %

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $71.68 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.89, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $74.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.06. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $57.77 and a 12-month high of $109.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 4th. The biotechnology company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $1.39. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 3.44% and a net margin of 11.00%. The company had revenue of $43.98 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.15 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 6,408 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.56, for a total value of $490,596.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 42,213 shares in the company, valued at $3,231,827.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 4,444 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.20, for a total transaction of $343,076.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 38,488 shares in the company, valued at $2,971,273.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John W. Kozarich sold 6,408 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.56, for a total value of $490,596.48. Following the transaction, the director now owns 42,213 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,231,827.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 17,560 shares of company stock worth $1,348,898. 10.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cerity Partners LLC acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth $282,000. FMR LLC raised its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 38.0% during the first quarter. FMR LLC now owns 566 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 155.4% during the third quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 572 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $59,000. 87.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company, which engages in the development and acquisition of technologies that help pharmaceutical companies to discover and develop medicines. Its products include evomela, IV voriconazole, duavee, viviant/conbriza, nexterone, and noxafil-IV. The company was founded by Ronald M.