Oppenheimer Raises Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Price Target to $147.00

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) had its target price upped by stock analysts at Oppenheimer from $135.00 to $147.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the biotechnology company’s stock. Oppenheimer’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 21.24% from the stock’s current price.

LGND has been the topic of several other reports. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Barclays increased their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $157.00 price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $143.17.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of LGND traded down $8.65 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $121.25. 260,623 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 103,330. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $51.21 and a 52 week high of $129.90. The company has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a PE ratio of 56.13 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $95.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 1,500 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.39, for a total transaction of $159,585.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,397,392.26. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, COO Matthew E. Korenberg sold 11,389 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.61, for a total transaction of $1,202,792.29. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 49,510 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,228,751.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.39, for a total value of $159,585.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 22,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,397,392.26. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 33,368 shares of company stock valued at $3,458,560. 5.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at about $809,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 224.1% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 35,841 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,620,000 after purchasing an additional 24,784 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 155.3% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 73,161 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $5,348,000 after buying an additional 44,499 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 16.6% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 115,480 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $11,558,000 after buying an additional 16,446 shares during the period. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 7.2% during the second quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 202,842 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $17,091,000 after buying an additional 13,595 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.28% 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.