Analysts Set Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) PT at $147.00

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the six ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $147.00.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on LGND shares. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays lifted their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director John L. Lamattina sold 2,406 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.65, for a total transaction of $297,501.90. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 29,515 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,649,529.75. This represents a 7.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 5.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.7% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 708,624 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $59,707,000 after purchasing an additional 44,543 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 707,414 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $70,805,000 after buying an additional 18,642 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 604,038 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $60,458,000 after buying an additional 17,414 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Capital LLC raised its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 545,821 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $54,631,000 after buying an additional 30,875 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 428,270 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $42,874,000 after acquiring an additional 22,495 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ:LGND opened at $113.80 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $115.68 and its 200-day moving average is $103.70. The stock has a market cap of $2.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.34 and a beta of 1.01. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $67.53 and a 1-year high of $129.90.

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.