Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Shares Sold by Royce & Associates LP

Royce & Associates LP lessened its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Free Report) by 45.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,090 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 4,996 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP's holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $610,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 79.4% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,022 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,403,000 after purchasing an additional 6,206 shares during the period. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,481,000. Atria Investments Inc grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 4,685 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $469,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 13.9% during the 3rd quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,100 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $310,000 after buying an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 93,208 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $9,329,000 after buying an additional 4,439 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 1,275 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.94, for a total value of $132,523.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 24,610 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,557,963.40. This trade represents a 4.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.39, for a total value of $159,585.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,534 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,397,392.26. This trade represents a 6.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 32,211 shares of company stock worth $3,336,450. Corporate insiders own 5.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $125.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Benchmark increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $157.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Six equities research 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 $144.83.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of LGND stock opened at $111.56 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $107.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.45 and a beta of 0.99. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $57.00 and a fifty-two week high of $129.90.

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.