Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Now Covered by Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Key Points

• Jefferies initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $180 price target (about 22.8% upside), while overall analyst sentiment is positive — 24 Buys, 4 Holds and an average price target of $157.62 ("Moderate Buy").
• Gilead beat quarterly estimates (EPS $1.86 vs. $1.83; revenue $7.93B vs. $7.68B) and issued FY2026 guidance of 8.45–8.85 EPS.
• Insiders have been selling shares recently (including the CEO), but institutional investors are adding large stakes — notably Norges Bank bought roughly $2.62B of stock and institutions now own 83.67% of the company.

Stock analysts at Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) in a research note issued on Tuesday. The brokerage set a "buy" rating and a $180.00 price target on the biopharmaceutical company's stock. Jefferies Financial Group's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 22.76% from the stock's current price.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on GILD. Argus lifted their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $135.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Bank of America set a $162.00 price objective on Gilead Sciences and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Twenty-four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Gilead Sciences has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $157.62.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

NASDAQ:GILD opened at $146.63 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $182.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.36. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $138.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $126.06. Gilead Sciences has a 12-month low of $93.37 and a 12-month high of $157.29.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $7.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 28.90% and a return on equity of 49.46%. Gilead Sciences's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.90 EPS. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.450-8.850 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Gilead Sciences news, CEO Daniel Patrick O'day sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.79, for a total transaction of $1,447,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 642,308 shares of the company's stock, valued at $92,999,775.32. This represents a 1.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.50, for a total transaction of $617,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 8,920 shares in the company, valued at $1,101,620. This represents a 35.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 309,280 shares of company stock valued at $43,935,470 over the last ninety days. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter worth about $2,617,152,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 397.6% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,748,403 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $748,147,000 after buying an additional 5,392,191 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth $517,808,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 3,763.8% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,223,304 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $518,368,000 after purchasing an additional 4,113,999 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 33.5% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 13,521,228 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,499,098,000 after buying an additional 3,394,330 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company's stock.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

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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