Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC Takes $1.34 Million Position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 6,045 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,337,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LGND. Cim Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Cim Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,484 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $296,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 2,872 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $543,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 86.3% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,688 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $527,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 1,531 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $289,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 2,145 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.00, for a total transaction of $544,830.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 33,629 shares in the company, valued at $8,541,766. The trade was a 6.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jason Aryeh sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $1,125,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 102,580 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,645,000. The trade was a 4.20% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 35,231 shares of company stock worth $9,199,401. Corporate insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

LGND stock opened at $302.57 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 21.28 and a quick ratio of 20.95. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $283.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $234.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.06 billion, a PE ratio of 41.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.13. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $132.21 and a 1 year high of $326.63.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by ($0.21). The company had revenue of $51.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.10 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 55.95%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.33 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on LGND shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $255.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Citigroup started coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $387.00 price objective for the company. HC Wainwright raised their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $266.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $326.00.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company that acquires, develops and out-licenses proprietary technologies designed to help pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies discover and develop novel medicines. Operating primarily through its research services and royalty-generating businesses, Ligand focuses on building a diversified portfolio of technology platforms and partnering with industry leaders to advance therapeutic candidates across multiple disease areas.

The company’s product offerings center around several core platforms.