Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Reaches New 12-Month High Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Key Points

• Gilead Sciences reached a new 52-week high of $121.38 following an earnings report that beat expectations, reporting $2.01 EPS and $7.08 billion in revenue.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with multiple firms upgrading their ratings and several price targets ranging from $125 to $135.
• Insiders have recently sold shares, indicating potential profit-taking, as CFO Andrew D. Dickinson and Director Jeffrey Bluestone made notable transactions.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $121.38 and last traded at $118.60, with a volume of 2883145 shares. The stock had previously closed at $110.28.

The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.05. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 50.99% and a net margin of 21.86%. The firm had revenue of $7.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.95 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.01 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Gilead Sciences's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GILD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $132.00 to $125.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Gilead Sciences from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Truist Financial upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $108.00 to $127.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $133.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, July 25th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $114.82.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.74, for a total transaction of $548,700.00. Following the sale, the director owned 8,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at $978,880.80. This trade represents a 35.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.52, for a total transaction of $3,010,560.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 121,152 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,026,263.04. The trade was a 18.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 82,000 shares of company stock worth $8,984,175. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Gilead Sciences

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 314.6% during 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 buying an additional 11,156,382 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the first quarter valued at approximately $620,415,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Gilead Sciences by 13,891.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,550,298 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $285,761,000 after acquiring an additional 2,532,070 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Gilead Sciences by 19.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 14,915,095 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,377,707,000 after purchasing an additional 2,458,954 shares during the period. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the second quarter worth $238,083,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company's stock.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $148.17 billion, a PE ratio of 23.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.33. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $110.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $107.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

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.