Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-seven analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $130.6522.

A number of research firms have commented on GILD. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $143.00 to $153.00 in a report on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Dbs Bank raised Gilead Sciences to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Scotiabank initiated coverage on Gilead Sciences in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Friday, October 31st.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GILD opened at $122.62 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Gilead Sciences has a 1-year low of $88.57 and a 1-year high of $128.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $152.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.01, a P/E/G ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.32. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $120.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $115.14.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $7.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.42 billion. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 27.88% and a return on equity of 51.86%. Gilead Sciences’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.02 EPS. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.050-8.250 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Gilead Sciences will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be paid a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.99%.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In other news, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.39, for a total value of $1,193,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 581,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,389,826.17. The trade was a 1.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Kelly A. Kramer sold 2,806 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.11, for a total transaction of $356,670.66. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $170,200.29. This represents a 67.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 135,757 shares of company stock valued at $16,616,127. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GILD. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,364,226 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $13,233,912,000 after buying an additional 1,893,401 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 2.6% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 29,207,662 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,231,548,000 after acquiring an additional 727,515 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the second quarter worth $2,150,268,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,139,681 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,680,505,000 after acquiring an additional 1,618,453 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 314.6% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,703,103 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,647,484,000 after acquiring an additional 11,156,382 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

About Gilead Sciences

Gilead Sciences, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines in the areas of unmet medical need in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company provides Biktarvy, Genvoya, Descovy, Odefsey, Truvada, Complera/ Eviplera, Stribild, Sunlencs, and Atripla products for the treatment of HIV/AIDS; Veklury, an injection for intravenous use, for the treatment of COVID-19; and Epclusa, Harvoni, Vemlidy, and Viread for the treatment of viral hepatitis.