Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Shares Acquired by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 93,208 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,439 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.52% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $9,329,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Chicago Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 124.3% during the second quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 514,946 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $43,389,000 after purchasing an additional 285,350 shares in the last quarter. Ashford Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth about $14,367,000. F M Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $11,350,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 708,624 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $59,707,000 after buying an additional 44,543 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 155.3% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 73,161 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $5,348,000 after acquiring an additional 44,499 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other news, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 1,275 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.94, for a total value of $132,523.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 24,610 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,557,963.40. This represents a 4.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.39, for a total transaction of $159,585.00. Following 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 6.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,368 shares of company stock worth $3,458,560 in the last ninety days. 5.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LGND. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $157.00 price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Benchmark raised their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $125.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.83.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of LGND opened at $111.67 on Tuesday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $57.00 and a 12-month high of $129.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.49 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $107.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.54.

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.