Oppenheimer Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Stock

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) had its price target lifted by Oppenheimer from $135.00 to $147.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. Oppenheimer currently has an outperform rating on the biotechnology company's stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Benchmark increased their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $157.00 price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ligand Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $143.17.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 6.7 %

Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $8.65 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $121.25. 260,620 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 136,475. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $105.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $94.85. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $51.21 and a 12 month high of $129.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.88 and a beta of 0.99.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.34. The business had revenue of $41.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.04 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 29.69% and a return on equity of 7.91%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 57.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.10 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 3.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, COO Matthew E. Korenberg sold 1,157 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.54, for a total value of $122,109.78. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 67,211 shares in the company, valued at $7,093,448.94. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.60, for a total value of $199,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,534 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,244,386.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Matthew E. Korenberg sold 1,157 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.54, for a total value of $122,109.78. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 67,211 shares in the company, valued at $7,093,448.94. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 33,368 shares of company stock valued at $3,458,560 in the last three months. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LGND. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,884,112 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $137,729,000 after buying an additional 7,598 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.7% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 708,624 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $59,707,000 after acquiring an additional 44,543 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 604,038 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $60,458,000 after buying an additional 17,414 shares during the last quarter. Chicago Capital LLC increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 545,821 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $54,631,000 after buying an additional 30,875 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rice Hall James & Associates LLC raised its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 7.0% during the third quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 312,879 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $31,316,000 after buying an additional 20,404 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.