Ashford Capital Management Inc. Has $41.44 Million Holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Ashford Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 207,565 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 6,213 shares during the quarter. Ligand Pharmaceuticals makes up about 5.1% of Ashford Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Ashford Capital Management Inc. owned about 1.04% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $41,440,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 25.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 6,120 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $644,000 after acquiring an additional 1,256 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth $344,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 8.2% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 10,660 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,121,000 after purchasing an additional 809 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 9.8% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 55,327 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $5,817,000 after purchasing an additional 4,926 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 176.2% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 36,922 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,882,000 after purchasing an additional 23,553 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John L. Lamattina sold 4,591 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.88, for a total transaction of $1,151,790.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 26,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,765,982.72. This trade represents a 14.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jason Haas sold 6,461 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.58, for a total transaction of $1,651,302.38. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,273,043.98. This trade represents a 56.47% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 35,698 shares of company stock valued at $9,019,252. Company insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $297.50 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $5.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.37, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $273.72 and its 200 day moving average is $229.43. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $129.55 and a 1 year high of $326.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 21.28 and a quick ratio of 20.95.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by ($0.21). The firm had revenue of $51.72 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.10 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 55.95% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.33 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $266.00 to $388.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $255.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Citigroup started coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $387.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $262.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $319.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company that acquires, develops and out-licenses proprietary technologies designed to help pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies discover and develop novel medicines. Operating primarily through its research services and royalty-generating businesses, Ligand focuses on building a diversified portfolio of technology platforms and partnering with industry leaders to advance therapeutic candidates across multiple disease areas.

The company’s product offerings center around several core platforms.