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Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND) Sees a More Significant Dip Than Broader Market: Some Facts to Know

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In the latest trading session, Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND - Free Report) closed at $52.09, marking a -1.31% move from the previous day. The stock trailed the S&P 500, which registered a daily loss of 1.26%. On the other hand, the Dow registered a loss of 0.86%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq decreased by 1.54%.

Shares of the drugmaker witnessed a loss of 11.03% over the previous month, trailing the performance of the Medical sector with its loss of 4.83% and the S&P 500's loss of 3.67%.

Market participants will be closely following the financial results of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in its upcoming release. In that report, analysts expect Ligand Pharmaceuticals to post earnings of $0.68 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 65.85%. Meanwhile, the latest consensus estimate predicts the revenue to be $27.22 million, indicating a 58.82% decrease compared to the same quarter of the previous year.

Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $5.10 per share and revenue of $125.36 million, indicating changes of +6.47% and -42.91%, respectively, compared to the previous year.

Investors should also pay attention to any latest changes in analyst estimates for Ligand Pharmaceuticals. These latest adjustments often mirror the shifting dynamics of short-term business patterns. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the company's business and profitability.

Empirical research indicates that these revisions in estimates have a direct correlation with impending stock price performance. To capitalize on this, we've crafted the Zacks Rank, a unique model that incorporates these estimate changes and offers a practical rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, spanning from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), boasts an impressive track record of outperformance, audited externally, with #1 ranked stocks yielding an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has shifted 3.53% upward. Ligand Pharmaceuticals is holding a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) right now.

Valuation is also important, so investors should note that Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a Forward P/E ratio of 10.35 right now. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 16.45, so one might conclude that Ligand Pharmaceuticals is trading at a discount comparatively.

Investors should also note that LGND has a PEG ratio of 0.52 right now. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. The Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.86 as trading concluded yesterday.

The Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry is part of the Medical sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 80, putting it in the top 32% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank is ordered from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Keep in mind to rely on Zacks.com to watch all these stock-impacting metrics, and more, in the succeeding trading sessions.


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