Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Stock Has Average Target Price of $171.07 According to Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts rate Gilead a “Moderate Buy”: 23 of 29 covering brokerages recommend buying the stock, with an average 12-month price target of $171.07.
• Gilead’s latest quarterly results topped expectations, with EPS of $2.55 versus $2.19 forecast and revenue of $8.30 billion; revenue rose 6.8% year over year.
• Recent coverage highlighted momentum in the HIV business, including strong Yeztugo sales and Biktarvy’s market leadership, while insiders sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the twenty-nine brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twenty-three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $171.07.

GILD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $163.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Zacks Research cut shares of Gilead Sciences from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Finally, Leerink Partners downgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $146.00 to $127.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st.

Gilead Sciences News Roundup

Investors following GILD have been watching these news items:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised several forecasts, including FY2027 EPS to $9.42 from $9.36 and FY2028 EPS to $9.69 from $9.66. It also made small upward adjustments to quarterly estimates. The revisions suggest slightly improved expectations, though the analyst’s Hold rating tempers the signal.
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage points to momentum in Gilead’s HIV franchise: Yeztugo sales are described as surging, Biktarvy remains a market leader, and the expanding pipeline could support longer-term growth. Read More..
• Neutral Sentiment: Gilead announced a partnership with TelevisaUnivision to promote HIV-prevention awareness at the Latin GRAMMY Awards. It may build awareness, but the announcement does not specify a direct near-term financial impact. Read More..

Insider Transactions at Gilead Sciences

In other news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 3,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.22, for a total value of $468,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 113,684 shares in the company, valued at $17,759,714.48. This trade represents a 2.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Daniel O'Day sold 9,810 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.17, for a total transaction of $1,718,417.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 551,683 shares in the company, valued at approximately $96,638,311.11. This trade represents a 1.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 242,709 shares of company stock valued at $39,503,427. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GILD. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. PFS Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 101.1% during the third quarter. PFS Partners LLC now owns 191 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Wiser Advisor Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences in the second quarter worth about $30,000. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gilead Sciences Stock Up 0.1%

NASDAQ:GILD traded up $0.13 on Friday, hitting $168.08. The stock had a trading volume of 3,637,311 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,772,945. Gilead Sciences has a 1 year low of $116.88 and a 1 year high of $176.58. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $155.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $141.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.38. The stock has a market cap of $208.48 billion, a P/E ratio of -53.19 and a beta of 0.35.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.36. The company had revenue of $8.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.81 billion. Gilead Sciences had a negative return on equity of 1.85% and a negative net margin of 12.47%. Gilead Sciences's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.47 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Gilead Sciences will post -0.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 15th. Gilead Sciences's dividend payout ratio is -103.80%.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

Gilead Sciences, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and commercializes medicines for serious diseases. Founded in 1987 and headquartered in Foster City, California, the company focuses on antiviral therapies, including treatments and preventive medicines for HIV and medicines for viral hepatitis. Its products include Biktarvy for HIV and Epclusa for hepatitis C. Gilead also develops medicines in areas such as oncology and inflammatory diseases. Its portfolio includes Veklury (remdesivir), an antiviral medicine used to treat COVID-19.

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