Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Posted by George Bondi on Jun 17th, 2026

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND – Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $260.97 and last traded at $260.1250, with a volume of 18454 shares. The stock had previously closed at $255.25.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on LGND shares. HC Wainwright upped their price target on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $243.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $252.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $244.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $257.71.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on LGND

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 2.4%

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.48, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 20.95 and a current ratio of 21.28. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $227.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $207.44.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by ($0.21). Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 55.95% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The firm had revenue of $51.72 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.10 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.33 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jason Haas sold 6,461 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.58, for a total value of $1,651,302.38. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,981 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,273,043.98. This trade represents a 56.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.06, for a total transaction of $1,135,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 41,382 shares in the company, valued at $9,396,196.92. This represents a 10.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 35,020 shares of company stock worth $8,216,533. Insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,337,000. Argent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter worth approximately $696,000. Cim Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Cim Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,484 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $296,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 31.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 157,865 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $31,518,000 after buying an additional 37,696 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,009,891 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $201,623,000 after buying an additional 14,491 shares during the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

(Get Free Report)

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.