The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 167 Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company cut its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 1.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,594 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 167 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $860,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 44.3% in the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 372,779 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $37,312,000 after buying an additional 114,436 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 59,574 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $5,963,000 after buying an additional 6,555 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 163,924 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $16,407,000 after acquiring an additional 8,584 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at approximately $329,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 55.9% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 26,963 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,699,000 after purchasing an additional 9,667 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Andrew Reardon sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.60, for a total value of $199,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 22,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,244,386.40. This trade represents a 8.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 1,275 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.94, for a total value of $132,523.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 24,610 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,557,963.40. This trade represents a 4.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,728 shares of company stock worth $2,271,575 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LGND has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $125.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Benchmark upped their target price 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.33.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LGND opened at $113.51 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $113.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $101.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.22 and a beta of 1.01. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $62.83 and a 12 month high of $129.90.

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.