Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND.O): Resuming Coverage with Buy/H Rating and $387 TP Following Close of XOMA Acquisition Which Opens Up 100+ Shots On Goal

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Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND.O): Resuming Coverage with Buy/H Rating and $387 TP Following Close of XOMA Acquisition Which Opens Up 100+ Shots On Goal

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21 Jul 2026 05:00:00 ET │ 14 pages

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND.O)

Resuming Coverage with Buy/H Rating and $387 TP Following Close of

XOMA Acquisition Which Opens Up 100+ Shots On Goal

CITI'S TAKE

We resume coverage of LGND after a period of Rating Suspended with a Buy / High Risk from Rating Suspended

Buy/H rating and $387 TP post-close of XOMA acquisition. We continue to

see upside to current levels as the highly compelling acquisition of XOMA Price (20 Jul 26 16:00) US$293.99

for $39/shr (~$739M equity value), plus a CVR tied to ongoing Tremfya Target price US$387.00

litigation, was solely based on the commercial/late-stage opportunities (7 from -commercial/14+ Ph3/registrational). However, LGND’s portfolio now

doubles to >200 assets, inclusive of 100+ Ph2/earlier-stage programs from Expected share price return 31.6%

XOMA, which we believe provides sufficient shots-on-goal for commercial Expected dividend yield 0.0%

opportunities rivaling LGND’s combined royalties from Expected total return 31.6%Filspari/Ohtuvayre/Zelsuvmi. Additionally, XOMA’s main commercial

drivers (Vabysmo/Ojemda/Miplyffa) are expected to be accretive for both Market Cap US$5,892M

LGND’s near-term (+$25M for 2026 total revenue) and long-term topline

growth, as we’d note combined peak royalties from these programs are

nearly equal to LGND’s Ohtuvayre+Zelsuvmi’s combined peak royalties

(~$150M). Following 1Q26 updates, mgmt. guiding to $270M-$310M in

2026 total revenue and adjusted core EPS of $8.50–$9.50. Price Performance

(RIC: LGND.O, BB: LGND US)

Model update. We have updated our model to reflect the XOMA transaction