Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Stock Position Lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. trimmed its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 56,451 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 7,321 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 0.30% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $5,650,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 44.3% during the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 372,779 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $37,312,000 after purchasing an additional 114,436 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 503.5% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 94,659 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $9,793,000 after buying an additional 78,973 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 708,624 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $59,707,000 after acquiring an additional 44,543 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $3,410,000. Finally, Chicago Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 6.0% during the third quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 545,821 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $54,631,000 after acquiring an additional 30,875 shares in the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LGND has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Barclays increased their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $147.00.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $111.08 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $107.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.26 and a beta of 1.05. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $67.53 and a 1-year high of $129.90.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John L. Lamattina sold 2,406 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.65, for a total value of $297,501.90. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 29,515 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,649,529.75. The trade was a 7.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 2,104 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.37, for a total value of $244,842.48. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 20,647 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,402,691.39. The trade was a 9.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

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.