Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Given New $140.00 Price Target at Craig Hallum

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) had its price objective increased by equities research analysts at Craig Hallum from $135.00 to $140.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the biotechnology company’s stock. Craig Hallum’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 45.38% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on LGND. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $144.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, June 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.25.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ LGND opened at $96.30 on Tuesday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $49.24 and a 1 year high of $97.80. The company has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a PE ratio of 18.63 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a fifty day moving average of $82.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.08.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $3.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $3.01. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 79.30% and a return on equity of 8.52%. The business had revenue of $30.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.92 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.96 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 29.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 5,156 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.66, for a total transaction of $446,818.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,026,024.14. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 5,156 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.66, for a total value of $446,818.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,026,024.14. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.04, for a total transaction of $830,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 22,205 shares in the company, valued at $1,843,903.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 25,403 shares of company stock valued at $2,150,882 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,876,514 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $134,021,000 after acquiring an additional 24,653 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 59.1% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 325,727 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $23,263,000 after purchasing an additional 121,049 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 11.3% in the 4th quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 205,208 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $14,656,000 after purchasing an additional 20,888 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 98.8% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 37,173 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,655,000 after purchasing an additional 18,472 shares during the last quarter. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 356.2% in the 4th quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,012 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $144,000 after purchasing an additional 1,571 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.