Acuitas Investments LLC Trims Holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Acuitas Investments LLC lowered its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 32.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,494 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 6,403 shares during the period. Acuitas Investments LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $2,390,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of LGND. Cim Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $254,000. Castleark Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $11,457,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.5% in the third quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 23,299 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,030,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $2,570,000. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $210,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $210.99 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $196.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $190.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.19, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 21.98, a current ratio of 22.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $93.58 and a 52-week high of $227.92.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.56. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 46.42% and a return on equity of 13.86%. The firm had revenue of $59.67 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.59 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.27 earnings per share. Ligand Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 39.5% on a year-over-year basis. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.000-9.000 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 2,034 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total transaction of $409,851.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 33,793 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,809,289.50. This trade represents a 5.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.35, for a total value of $1,031,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 36,869 shares in the company, valued at $7,607,918.15. This trade represents a 11.94% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 24,915 shares of company stock valued at $5,165,939. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on LGND shares. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen cut Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Citigroup began coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $270.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $234.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ligand Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $245.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals 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.