Martingale Asset Management L P Acquires 270 Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Martingale Asset Management L P lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,092 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 270 shares during the period. Martingale Asset Management L P owned approximately 0.10% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $1,939,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 7,193 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $771,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE grew its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 758 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 2,862 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $307,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,297 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $568,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 4,034 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $432,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on LGND shares. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $143.00 price objective for the company. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $146.43.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.03, for a total transaction of $575,150.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,879 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,171,651.37. This trade represents a 20.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 5.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LGND opened at $101.29 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $111.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $111.94. The company has a market capitalization of $1.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.35 and a beta of 1.07. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $67.72 and a 1-year high of $129.90.

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.