Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Updates FY 2025 Earnings Guidance

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) issued an update on its FY 2025 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of 7.400-7.650 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of 4.250. The company issued revenue guidance of $225.0 million-$235.0 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $212.8 million.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 9.4%

LGND stock traded up $17.84 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $208.22. 471,680 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 158,424. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a twelve month low of $93.58 and a twelve month high of $211.92. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $177.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $140.96. The company has a market capitalization of $4.08 billion, a PE ratio of -52.06 and a beta of 0.91.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $47.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.87 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 40.44% and a negative return on equity of 9.21%. Ligand Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on LGND shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $190.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. HC Wainwright raised their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $206.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Benchmark raised their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $190.67.

Insider Transactions at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Jason Aryeh sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total transaction of $1,708,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 69,289 shares in the company, valued at $11,835,254.09. This represents a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.05, for a total value of $89,220.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 44,588 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,518,537.40. This represents a 1.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 11,401 shares of company stock worth $1,956,894 over the last 90 days. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 170.7% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 5,860 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $639,000 after acquiring an additional 3,695 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 9.9% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 65,800 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $7,480,000 after acquiring an additional 5,922 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at $205,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.5% during the second quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 22,964 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,613,000 after purchasing an additional 781 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1,656.8% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,669 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $190,000 after purchasing an additional 1,574 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

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.