New York, June 2, 2026, 13:09 (EDT)
Ligand Pharmaceuticals shares moved higher on Tuesday. The stock outperformed biotech funds, which took a hit, as investors focused on upcoming management meetings and stayed active trading Ligand’s pending XOMA Royalty deal.
The Nasdaq-listed stock was trading at $233.11 as of 12:53 p.m. EDT, up 1.4%. The SPDR S&P Biotech ETF was down 3.8% and the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF slid 3.0%. The SPY ETF, which tracks the S&P 500, edged up 0.1% and the QQQ, which follows the Nasdaq 100, added 0.4%.
Why it matters now: Ligand is pushing to prove a slimmer, royalty-driven business can keep up growth while small biotech shares stay under pressure. Royalties are a share of future sales or milestone cash, and Ligand focuses on buying or backing those rights instead of running a lot of its own drug trials.
Ligand’s senior management is set for two conference stops soon. They’ll take one-on-one meetings at the Stifel 2026 Boston Cross Sector 1×1 Conference on June 3. A week later, Ligand will be in Miami for a fireside chat at a Goldman Sachs healthcare event.
The main issue is still the April 27 deal for Ligand to buy XOMA Royalty at $39 per share in cash, giving XOMA an equity value of about $739 million. Reuters said the purchase would bring in over 120 treatments, with seven of them already on the market, pushing Ligand’s total portfolio to more than 200 drugs either approved or in the pipeline.
Ligand CEO Todd Davis called XOMA “a compelling opportunity” and said in the deal release it would bring in marketed products and almost double Ligand’s Phase 2 and Phase 3 pipeline. These are the key steps before approval for sale. GlobeNewswire
Ligand is giving bulls something to point to after first-quarter numbers showed revenue up to $51.7 million from $45.3 million, with a 56% jump in royalty revenue to $43.0 million thanks to payments tied to Travere Therapeutics’ Filspari and Merck’s Ohtuvayre and Capvaxive. But the numbers weren’t all good. The company reported a net loss of $13.3 million under U.S. GAAP, mostly from a $49.2 million non-cash fair-value hit on Pelthos investments.
XOMA dropped 0.3% to $41.58. Royalty Pharma, which is a bigger player in the drug royalty space, lost 1.4% and finished at $54.40. Ligand is also working to get bigger in this royalty and financing market, rather than building out its own drug pipeline.
But it’s not all straightforward. Ligand is guiding for $8.50 to $9.50 in adjusted earnings per share for 2026 and $225 million to $250 million in royalty revenue, which includes some expected help from XOMA for part of the year. The deal still depends on XOMA shareholder approval and other closing steps. Delays, weaker sales from partner drugs, or more selling pressure in biotech could hit the story even if Ligand avoids some direct trial spending.
Market action Tuesday had Ligand trading like a deal-and-cash-flow play, not your usual biotech. That could flip quickly. Investors will look for more specifics from management during the June meetings on when any moves happen, the size of the savings, and how long the royalties hold up.
