Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Takes Position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm purchased 1,800 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 708,624 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $59,707,000 after purchasing an additional 44,543 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 707,414 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $70,805,000 after buying an additional 18,642 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 604,038 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $60,458,000 after buying an additional 17,414 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Capital LLC increased its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 545,821 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $54,631,000 after acquiring an additional 30,875 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 428,270 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $42,874,000 after acquiring an additional 22,495 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on LGND. Benchmark increased their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $147.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of LGND opened at $114.41 on Thursday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $67.53 and a 12-month high of $129.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.58 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $114.74 and its 200-day moving average is $102.84.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 1,275 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.94, for a total transaction of $132,523.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 24,610 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,557,963.40. The trade was a 4.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was 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 directly 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 have sold 21,728 shares of company stock worth $2,271,575 in the last three months. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals 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.