Woodstock Corp Boosts Position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Woodstock Corp grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,411 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 200 shares during the quarter. Woodstock Corp owned 0.16% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $3,151,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 708,624 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $59,707,000 after acquiring an additional 44,543 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 707,414 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $70,805,000 after purchasing an additional 18,642 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the third quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 604,038 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $60,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,414 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.0% in the third quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 545,821 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $54,631,000 after buying an additional 30,875 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake 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 buying an additional 22,495 shares in the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LGND opened at $111.08 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a PE ratio of 44.26 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $107.01. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $67.53 and a 12-month high of $129.90.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LGND has been the topic of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. 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. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $147.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 2,104 shares of the 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 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 SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John L. Lamattina sold 2,406 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.65, for a total value of $297,501.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 29,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,649,529.75. This represents a 7.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.