Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Reduces Holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 26.7% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 52,652 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 19,166 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $10,510,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 749,754 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $85,232,000 after purchasing an additional 22,629 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 36.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 516,464 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $97,648,000 after purchasing an additional 138,169 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 115.9% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 496,160 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $93,809,000 after buying an additional 266,304 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 493,589 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $93,336,000 after buying an additional 19,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 429,004 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $81,112,000 after buying an additional 61,209 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $304.26 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $268.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $227.16. The company has a market capitalization of $6.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 1.10. 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 quick ratio of 20.95 and a current ratio of 21.28.

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

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 2,145 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.00, for a total value of $544,830.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 33,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,541,766. This trade represents a 6.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John L. Lamattina sold 4,591 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals 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 transaction, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 35,698 shares of company stock worth $9,019,252 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America raised their target price on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $266.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $255.00 to $332.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $262.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $387.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.