Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 16.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 115,480 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,446 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $11,558,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at $34,000. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 21.7% in the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 758 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth $67,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 32.4% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,840 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $131,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on LGND. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. Craig Hallum lifted their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Benchmark upped their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, HC Wainwright lifted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $144.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $134.40.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Todd C. Davis bought 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $97.39 per share, for a total transaction of $243,475.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 123,010 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,979,943.90. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 1,500 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.39, for a total transaction 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 approximately $2,397,392.26. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Todd C. Davis bought 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $97.39 per share, for a total transaction of $243,475.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 123,010 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,979,943.90. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 51,613 shares of company stock worth $5,255,692. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.7 %

Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $111.82 on Friday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $49.24 and a 52-week high of $113.37. The firm has a market cap of $2.04 billion, a PE ratio of 51.77 and a beta of 1.00. The company’s 50 day moving average is $103.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.67.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.34. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 7.91% and a net margin of 29.69%. The business had revenue of $41.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.04 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 57.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 3.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals 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.