Wellington Management Group LLP Sells 1,085 Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Wellington Management Group LLP decreased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 12.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,603 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 1,085 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $815,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 79,126 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $8,478,000 after purchasing an additional 1,640 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,960,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 397,700 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $42,614,000 after acquiring an additional 24,921 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 102,995 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $11,036,000 after acquiring an additional 1,360 shares during the period. Finally, Congress Wealth Management LLC DE lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 94,335 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $10,108,000 after acquiring an additional 4,014 shares during the period. 91.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 2.9 %

Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $104.27 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $110.80 and its 200 day moving average is $112.06. The company has a market capitalization of $2.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.54 and a beta of 1.07. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $67.72 and a twelve month high of $129.90.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LGND has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $143.00 price target for the company. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $146.43.

Insider Transactions at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.03, for a total value of $575,150.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 18,879 shares in the company, valued at $2,171,651.37. The trade was a 20.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

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.