FORM 3
        
UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

INITIAL STATEMENT OF BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP OF SECURITIES

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Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 or Section 30(h) of the Investment Company Act of 1940
                      

1. Name and Address of Reporting Person *

GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC
2. Date of Event Requiring Statement (MM/DD/YYYY)
2/3/2020 

3. Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol

LIGAND PHARMACEUTICALS INC [LGND]
(Last)        (First)        (Middle)

200 WEST STREET
4. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer (Check all applicable)

_____ Director                          ___X___ 10% Owner
_____ Officer (give title below)        _____ Other (specify below)
(Street)

NEW YORK, NY 10282      

(City)              (State)              (Zip)
5. If Amendment, Date Original Filed(MM/DD/YYYY)
 

6. Individual or Joint/Group Filing(Check Applicable Line)

___ Form filed by One Reporting Person
_X_ Form filed by More than One Reporting Person

Table I - Non-Derivative Securities Beneficially Owned
1.Title of Security
(Instr. 4)
2. Amount of Securities Beneficially Owned
(Instr. 4)
3. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I)
(Instr. 5)
4. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership
(Instr. 5)
Common Units 686,330 I See footnote (1)(2)

Table II - Derivative Securities Beneficially Owned (e.g., puts, calls, warrants, options, convertible securities)
1. Title of Derivate Security
(Instr. 4)
2. Date Exercisable and Expiration Date
(MM/DD/YYYY)
3. Title and Amount of Securities Underlying Derivative Security
(Instr. 4)
4. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security5. Ownership Form of Derivative Security: Direct (D) or Indirect (I)
(Instr. 5)
6. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership
(Instr. 5)
Date ExercisableExpiration DateTitleAmount or Number of Shares
Convertible Bonds 5/11/2023 (3)5/15/2023 Common Units 173,246.44 (3) $248.48 I See footnotes (1)(2)
Options  (4) (4)Common Units 1,207,320 (4) $315.38 I See footnotes (1)(2)

Explanation of Responses:
(1) This statement is being filed by The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. ("GS Group") and Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC ("Goldman Sachs" and together with GS Group, the "Reporting Persons"). Goldman Sachs is a subsidiary of GS Group. Each Reporting Person disclaims beneficial ownership of the securities reported herein except to the extent of its pecuniary interest therein. On February 4, 2020, the Reporting Persons experienced a decrease in their beneficial ownership that reduced their beneficial ownership to below 10% due to a reduction in excess securities borrows.
(2) The Common Units of the Issuer reported herein as indirectly purchased were beneficially owned directly by Goldman Sachs and indirectly by GS Group.
(3) Goldman Sachs may exchange all or a portion of its convertible bonds for Common Units of the Issuer on a 1 - for - 4.0244 basis.
(4) Goldman Sachs may exercise all or a portion of the options at any time during the conversion period between August 15, 2023 and February 6, 2024 for Common Units of the Issuer on a 1 - for - 1 basis.

Reporting Owners
Reporting Owner Name / Address
Relationships
Director10% OwnerOfficerOther
GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC
200 WEST STREET
NEW YORK, NY 10282

X

GOLDMAN SACHS & CO. LLC
200 WEST STREET
NEW YORK, NY 10282

X


Signatures
/s/ Nathan R. Burby, Attorney-in-fact2/14/2020
**Signature of Reporting PersonDate

/s/ Nathan R. Burby, Attorney-in-fact2/14/2020
**Signature of Reporting PersonDate


Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially owned directly or indirectly.
*If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, see Instruction 5(b)(v).
**Intentional misstatements or omissions of facts constitute Federal Criminal Violations. See 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a).
Note:File three copies of this Form, one of which must be manually signed. If space is insufficient, see Instruction 6 for procedure.
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