Legato Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Legato Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,058 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 753 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,935,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Yousif Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 7,193 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $771,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 4.0% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 2,896 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $290,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 23.3% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 661 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.7% during the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 5,349 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $535,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Woodstock Corp raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 29,411 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,151,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Ligand Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $147.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.2 %

LGND stock opened at $112.77 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $114.23 and a 200-day moving average of $109.78. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $67.72 and a 12-month high of $129.90. The company has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.93 and a beta of 1.04.

Insider Activity

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 2,104 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.37, for a total value of $244,842.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 20,647 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,402,691.39. The trade was a 9.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John L. Lamattina sold 2,406 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.65, for a total transaction of $297,501.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 29,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,649,529.75. The trade was a 7.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

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.