Fisher Asset Management LLC Boosts Stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 12.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 59,574 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 6,555 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned 0.33% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $5,963,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 23.3% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 661 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 21.7% during 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. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $67,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on LGND. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $157.00 price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, November 8th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Benchmark raised their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $125.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.83.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of LGND opened at $122.55 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $109.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.33. The company has a market capitalization of $2.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.82 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.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 1,275 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.94, for a total transaction of $132,523.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 24,610 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,557,963.40. This trade represents a 4.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.60, for a total value of $199,200.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,534 shares in the company, valued at $2,244,386.40. This represents a 8.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 19,322 shares of company stock valued at $1,974,073. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

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.