Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The biotechnology company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $3.01, RTT News reports. The business had revenue of $30.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.92 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 37.80% and a return on equity of 11.98%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 29.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.96 earnings per share.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ LGND traded up $0.89 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $87.01. 23,681 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 160,515. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $74.23 and its 200-day moving average is $69.24. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $49.24 and a 52-week high of $94.57. The company has a market capitalization of $1.54 billion, a PE ratio of 31.32 and a beta of 1.01.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LGND has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $144.00 price objective on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $95.00 target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, April 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $116.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 1,893 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.30, for a total value of $140,649.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 28,926 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,149,201.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 10.40% 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.