Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Given New $143.00 Price Target at Royal Bank of Canada

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) had its target price lifted by equities research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $141.00 to $143.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the biotechnology company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 18.62% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also commented on LGND. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $125.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Benchmark increased their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.33.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.6 %

NASDAQ:LGND traded up $1.95 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $120.55. 16,346 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 134,712. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $60.28 and a 1-year high of $129.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.28 billion, a PE ratio of 48.04 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $113.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $101.67.

Insider Activity

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director John L. Lamattina sold 2,406 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.65, for a total value of $297,501.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 29,515 shares in the company, valued at $3,649,529.75. The trade was a 7.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 2,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.60, for a total transaction of $199,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 22,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,244,386.40. This trade represents a 8.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,728 shares of company stock worth $2,271,575 in the last three months. 5.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ligand Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LGND. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $339,000. Portside Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $229,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 4.9% in the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 8,500 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $716,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 20.1% in the second quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 10,847 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $914,000 after buying an additional 1,812 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 16.2% during the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 99,034 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $8,345,000 after acquiring an additional 13,839 shares during the period. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company 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.