HC Wainwright Has Bullish Forecast for LGND FY2025 Earnings

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) – Analysts at HC Wainwright upped their FY2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report issued on Wednesday, December 11th. HC Wainwright analyst J. Pantginis now anticipates that the biotechnology company will post earnings per share of $3.46 for the year, up from their prior estimate of $3.23. HC Wainwright currently has a “Buy” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Ligand Pharmaceuticals’ current full-year earnings is $1.73 per share.

Several other research firms also recently commented on LGND. Oppenheimer upped their price target 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 raised their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Benchmark boosted their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $125.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.33.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LGND opened at $116.91 on Friday. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $65.84 and a one year high of $129.90. The firm has a market cap of $2.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.58 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $114.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $102.09.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other news, COO Matthew E. Korenberg sold 9,772 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.22, for a total transaction of $989,121.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 50,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,139,647.94. This trade represents a 16.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 24,610 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,557,963.40. This represents a 4.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,728 shares of company stock valued at $2,271,575. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $31,000. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $34,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 23.3% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 661 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 21.7% in the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 758 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. acquired a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $67,000. 91.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

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.