Amalgamated Bank Sells 148 Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Amalgamated Bank trimmed its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 2.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,158 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 148 shares during the quarter. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $435,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $7,655,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 14,066 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,005,000 after purchasing an additional 438 shares during the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 47.3% during the fourth quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 7,581 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $541,000 after purchasing an additional 2,435 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 41.0% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 659,434 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $47,097,000 after purchasing an additional 191,870 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $107,000. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on LGND. Benchmark raised their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Craig Hallum increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $144.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ LGND opened at $97.37 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $102.88 and its 200-day moving average is $88.53. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $49.24 and a one year high of $112.13. The firm has a market cap of $1.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.83 and a beta of 1.01.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $33.04 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.10 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 57.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 3.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CEO Todd C. Davis purchased 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was 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 directly owns 123,010 shares in the company, valued at $11,979,943.90. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Todd C. Davis purchased 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was 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 directly owns 123,010 shares in the company, valued at $11,979,943.90. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Matthew E. Korenberg sold 9,772 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.22, for a total value of $989,121.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 50,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,139,647.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 51,613 shares of company stock valued at $5,255,692. 5.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.