Archer Investment Corp Takes Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Key Points

• Archer Investment Corp acquired 7,578 Gilead shares worth approximately $957,000 in the second quarter, while institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 83.67% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive overall, with 24 Buy ratings and five Holds producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $158.04, despite several recent target-price reductions.
• Gilead reported quarterly revenue of $7.80 billion, up 10.6% year over year, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, equal to a 2.3% annualized yield; recent FDA and European approvals could further support its HIV and oncology franchises.

Archer Investment Corp acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 7,578 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $957,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Aviva PLC lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 1,156,738 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $141,978,000 after purchasing an additional 59,782 shares during the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at $1,418,000. Bank of Nova Scotia bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 2nd quarter valued at $100,056,000. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter worth $55,754,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 106,526 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $13,075,000 after buying an additional 13,385 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.67% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Daiwa Securities Group dropped their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $161.00 to $150.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Leerink Partners cut shares of Gilead Sciences from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $146.00 to $127.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Gilead Sciences from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $170.00 target price on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Twenty-four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Gilead Sciences currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $158.04.

Key Gilead Sciences News

Here are the key news stories impacting Gilead Sciences this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The FDA approved Bixlenvo, a once-daily single-tablet regimen combining bictegravir and lenacapavir for virologically suppressed adults with HIV. It is the first and only single-tablet option for patients on complex regimens who cannot use currently available alternatives, potentially expanding Gilead’s HIV franchise and supporting its longer-term lenacapavir strategy. Reuters FDA approval article
• Positive Sentiment: The European Commission approved Trodelvy plus Keytruda for certain first-line metastatic triple-negative breast cancer patients, strengthening Gilead’s oncology portfolio and adding a potential growth opportunity outside its core HIV business. EU Trodelvy approval article
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly constructive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of approximately $158. However, GILD’s strong multi-year advance may have raised expectations and limited the immediate upside from the Bixlenvo approval. Gilead valuation article
• Negative Sentiment: Director Anthony Welters sold 18,000 shares worth about $2.68 million, reducing his position by roughly 58%. The sale occurred under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, making it a limited bearish signal, but it may still weigh modestly on investor sentiment. SEC insider transaction filing

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In related news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.64, for a total transaction of $3,853,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 118,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,273,727.76. The trade was a 19.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Anthony Welters sold 18,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.62, for a total transaction of $2,675,160.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 12,894 shares in the company, valued at $1,916,306.28. The trade was a 58.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 three months, insiders have sold 105,000 shares of company stock valued at $14,238,120. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Gilead Sciences Trading Down 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ GILD opened at $145.68 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $180.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -54.56 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The business's 50 day moving average is $134.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $136.62. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1-year low of $108.46 and a 1-year high of $157.29.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($6.75) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($7.25) by $0.50. Gilead Sciences had a negative return on equity of 2.11% and a negative net margin of 10.64%.The firm had revenue of $7.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.01 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.5 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Gilead Sciences's payout ratio is -122.85%.

About Gilead Sciences

Gilead Sciences, Inc, founded in 1987 and headquartered in Foster City, California, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of medicines in areas of high unmet medical need. The company initially built its reputation in antiviral therapies and has since expanded into oncology, cell therapy and inflammatory diseases. Gilead operates a global research and commercial organization, conducting clinical development and selling medicines in markets around the world.

Gilead's product portfolio is anchored by antiviral therapies for HIV and viral hepatitis.

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