Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Trims Stock Holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA trimmed its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 6.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 507,019 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 34,826 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 2.58% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $95,862,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LGND. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,789,955,000. Acuitas Investments LLC grew its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1,922.9% in the 3rd quarter. Acuitas Investments LLC now owns 402,494 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $71,298,000 after buying an additional 382,597 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 676.6% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 254,805 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $45,136,000 after buying an additional 221,996 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 64.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 378,295 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $67,011,000 after buying an additional 148,437 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $21,498,000. 91.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 4.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:LGND opened at $213.44 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $199.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $195.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 22.23 and a quick ratio of 21.98. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $98.89 and a one year high of $227.92. The company has a market cap of $4.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.61, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.14.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $59.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.59 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 46.42% and a return on equity of 13.86%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 39.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.27 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.000-9.000 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on LGND. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, December 29th. HC Wainwright raised their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $231.00 to $239.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $270.00 to $276.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $245.86.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.87, for a total transaction of $207,870.00. Following the sale, the director owned 32,793 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,816,680.91. This trade represents a 2.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Octavio Espinoza sold 3,057 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total transaction of $687,825.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 21,010 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,727,250. This trade represents a 12.70% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,915 shares of company stock worth $6,385,917. Corporate insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company that acquires, develops and out-licenses proprietary technologies designed to help pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies discover and develop novel medicines. Operating primarily through its research services and royalty-generating businesses, Ligand focuses on building a diversified portfolio of technology platforms and partnering with industry leaders to advance therapeutic candidates across multiple disease areas.

The company’s product offerings center around several core platforms.