Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC Has $32.64 Million Position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND

Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC lowered its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 287,120 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 1,707 shares during the quarter. Ligand Pharmaceuticals makes up 3.1% of Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC owned 1.49% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $32,640,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. CWC Advisors LLC. raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. CWC Advisors LLC. now owns 3,518 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 14.1% during the 2nd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 745 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $85,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Woodstock Corp raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 29,497 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $3,353,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. now owns 9,384 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $987,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,407 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $568,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.44, for a total transaction of $83,798.48. Following the sale, the director directly owned 45,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,084,669.20. This represents a 1.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jason Aryeh sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total transaction of $1,708,100.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 69,289 shares in the company, valued at $11,835,254.09. This trade represents a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,401 shares of company stock worth $1,929,262 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on LGND shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday. Benchmark boosted their price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $167.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $176.50.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

LGND stock opened at $177.73 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $163.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $129.80. The company has a market capitalization of $3.48 billion, a P/E ratio of -44.43 and a beta of 0.95. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $93.58 and a 12 month high of $186.40.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $47.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.87 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 40.44% and a negative return on equity of 9.21%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.40 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.700-7.000 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

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.