Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Position Boosted by Fmr LLC

Fmr LLC boosted its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 550.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 12,749 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 10,789 shares during the period. Fmr LLC’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,276,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of LGND. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 44.3% in the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 372,779 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $37,312,000 after acquiring an additional 114,436 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 12.4% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 59,574 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $5,963,000 after purchasing an additional 6,555 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 163,924 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $16,407,000 after purchasing an additional 8,584 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $329,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 55.9% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 26,963 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,699,000 after purchasing an additional 9,667 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 2,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals 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 transaction, the insider now owns 22,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,244,386.40. This trade represents a 8.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 1,275 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The shares were 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 $2,557,963.40. This represents a 4.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,728 shares of company stock valued at $2,271,575 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 4.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ LGND opened at $122.34 on Tuesday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $67.36 and a 12-month high of $129.90. The company has a market cap of $2.31 billion, a PE ratio of 48.74 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $114.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $102.59.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Benchmark increased their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $147.00.

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.