Insider Selling: Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) CFO Sells $244,842.48 in Stock

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 2,104 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.37, for a total transaction of $244,842.48. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 20,647 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,402,691.39. This trade represents a 9.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 4.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ LGND opened at $109.19 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $116.21 and a 200 day moving average of $104.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.50 and a beta of 1.01. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $67.53 and a 12-month high of $129.90.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LGND. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 20.0% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 43,456 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,349,000 after purchasing an additional 7,247 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 428,270 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $42,874,000 after acquiring an additional 22,495 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 12.4% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 59,574 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $5,963,000 after acquiring an additional 6,555 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 163,924 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $16,407,000 after purchasing an additional 8,584 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 115,480 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $11,558,000 after purchasing an additional 16,446 shares during the period. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LGND has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $147.00.

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.