Royce & Associates LP lowered its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 52.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,897 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 3,193 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP's holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $310,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in LGND. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 79.4% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,022 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,403,000 after acquiring an additional 6,206 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 15,084 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,510,000 after buying an additional 329 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 55.9% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 26,963 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,699,000 after acquiring an additional 9,667 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $329,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 163,924 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $16,407,000 after acquiring an additional 8,584 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company's stock.
Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals
In other news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.03, for a total value of $575,150.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,879 shares in the company, valued at $2,171,651.37. This trade represents a 20.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 5.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance
NASDAQ:LGND traded down $1.60 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $108.09. The company's stock had a trading volume of 86,333 shares, compared to its average volume of 120,519. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $67.72 and a twelve month high of $129.90. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $114.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $112.01. The stock has a market cap of $2.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.06 and a beta of 1.12.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research analysts have recently issued reports on LGND shares. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Barclays lifted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. StockNews.com upgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $147.00.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on Ligand Pharmaceuticals
About Ligand Pharmaceuticals
(
Free Report)
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.
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