Ligand Reports 32% Royalty Revenue Growth, Raises EPS Guidance Following XOMA Acquisition
核心洞察
Ligand Pharmaceuticals reported second-quarter 2026 royalty revenue of $48 million, a 32% year-over-year increase driven by Filspari, Ohtuvayre (搜索), and Zelsuvmi.
The company completed its $700 million zero-coupon convertible debt financing and closed the XOMA Royalty (搜索) acquisition, adding more than 120 assets to its portfolio.
Full-year 2026 adjusted EPS guidance was raised at the low end to $9.00 (range: $9.00–$9.50), with royalty revenue guidance reaffirmed at $225–$250 million.
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (Nasdaq: LGND) reported second-quarter 2026 financial results marked by a 32% year-over-year increase in royalty revenue, reaching $48.0 million, as the company raised the low end of its full-year adjusted earnings per share guidance and highlighted the completion of its transformative XOMA Royalty (搜索) acquisition.
Total revenues for the second quarter of 2026 were $63.7 million, compared with $47.6 million for the same period in 2025, representing a 34% increase. Adjusted net income was $50.8 million, or $2.37 per diluted share, compared with $32.0 million, or $1.60 per diluted share, in the prior-year period—year-over-year growth of 59% and 48%, respectively.
"Ligand delivered another strong quarter, with royalty revenue growing 32% year-over-year and continued momentum from Filspari following its FSGS approval by the FDA," said Todd Davis, CEO of Ligand.
Royalty Growth Drivers
Royalty revenue growth was primarily attributable to royalties earned on Travere Therapeutics' Filspari, Pelthos Therapeutics' Zelsuvmi, and Merck (搜索)'s Ohtuvayre (搜索). Travere reported second-quarter U.S. net product sales of Filspari of $141 million, representing 96% year-over-year growth driven by the strong FSGS launch and continued IgAN growth. Merck reported net sales of Ohtuvayre of $204 million, with net product sales including a benefit from the timing of specialty pharmacy purchases.
These gains were partly offset by a 17% decline in Amgen's KYPROLIS sales to $314 million, which Ligand noted was anticipated and remained within its royalty revenue outlook.
Captisol sales were $8.0 million, compared with $8.3 million in the second quarter of 2025, reflecting lower gross margins due to changes in customer mix. Contract revenue and income were $7.7 million, compared with $2.9 million in the prior-year period, with the increase primarily attributable to the timing of milestone events under partner agreements.
XOMA Acquisition and Portfolio Expansion
On July 14, 2026, shortly after the quarter ended, Ligand closed its acquisition of XOMA Royalty (搜索), which CEO Todd Davis described as the largest transaction in Ligand's history. The deal adds more than 120 commercial, clinical, and preclinical-stage assets to Ligand's portfolio, including seven commercial-stage programs and approximately 14 late-stage clinical programs.
Newly acquired commercial assets include Roche's VABYSMO (faricimab-svoa), which generated approximately $2.6 billion in first-half 2026 sales; Servier's OJEMDA (tovorafenib); and Zevra Therapeutics' MIPLYFFA (arimoclomol). The late-stage pipeline features Takeda's mezagitamab and assets from Takeda's externalized portfolio, including osavampator, volixibat, and OHB-607.
Management expects the acquisition to contribute approximately $0.50 in adjusted EPS in the second half of 2026 and approximately $1.50 in 2027. CFO Tavo Espinoza noted that XOMA had operated with about $30 million in annual expenses as a standalone public company, while Ligand expects to reduce those expenses to less than $5 million annually by eliminating duplicative infrastructure.
The acquired portfolio also includes approximately $2.3 billion in publicly disclosed potential milestones, though Ligand cautioned that those milestones depend on future development, regulatory, and commercial outcomes.
Convertible Debt Financing
On June 25, 2026, Ligand completed a $700 million offering of 0.00% convertible senior notes due 2031, with net proceeds of approximately $679 million after fees and expenses. The company used approximately $82 million of the net proceeds for a call spread overlay and approximately $60 million to repurchase 228,859 shares of its common stock at approximately $262 per share.
The convertible note hedge transactions are intended to reduce potential dilution, with the warrant transactions structured such that dilution would not occur unless Ligand's common stock price exceeds $524.34 per share. Following the financing and XOMA closing, Ligand reported approximately $700 million of deployable capital, with expected operating cash flow exceeding $200 million in 2026 and approaching $300 million in 2027.
Key Portfolio Developments
On April 13, 2026, Travere announced FDA approval of Filspari to reduce proteinuria in adult and pediatric patients aged 8 years and older with focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (搜索) (FSGS), marking the first and only FDA-approved medicine for FSGS and expanding beyond IgA nephropathy (搜索) (IgAN) into a second rare kidney disease. On June 19, Chugai filed a new drug application in Japan for sparsentan for IgAN.
On June 18, 2026, Merck (搜索) announced FDA approval of an expanded indication for Capvaxive to include children and adolescents aged 2 through 17 years with chronic medical conditions that increase pneumococcal disease risk. Merck reported Capvaxive net sales of $184 million, a 42% increase driven by launch uptake in international markets, particularly Asia Pacific and Europe, as well as in the U.S.
On June 12, 2026, Sanofi announced FDA accelerated approval of Tzield in children aged 8 to 17 years recently diagnosed with stage 3 type 1 diabetes (搜索), making it the first disease-modifying therapy for patients recently diagnosed with stage 3 T1D.
Regarding volixibat, the VISTAS Phase 2b study in primary sclerosing cholangitis (搜索) (PSC) met its primary endpoint, demonstrating a statistically significant and clinically meaningful 2.72-point reduction in cholestatic pruritus. Volixibat was subsequently granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation for cholestatic pruritus due to PSC. However, during the earnings call, Vice President of Portfolio Strategy Lauren Hay noted that the FDA recommended a Phase 3 study at a pre-NDA meeting, and the partner is now targeting additional FDA discussions and a potential submission in the first half of 2027.
2026 Financial Guidance
Ligand raised the low end of its full-year 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $9.00 while maintaining the upper end at $9.50 (previously $8.50 to $9.50). The company reaffirmed its other 2026 outlook: royalty revenue of $225 million to $250 million, total revenue of $270 million to $310 million, Captisol revenue of $35 million to $40 million, and contract revenue of $10 million to $20 million.
Management indicated the company is entering a catalyst-heavy period, with as many as seven pivotal trial readouts over the next 18 months, potential FDA approvals, label expansions, and geographic launches. Davis said Ligand plans to provide an updated five-year outlook at its Investor Day in December, reflecting the XOMA acquisition and developments across its existing portfolio.