Gilead Sciences Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:GILD)

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors bought 51,660 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 212% compared to the average daily volume of 16,559 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total transaction of $266,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 168,174 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,893,713.60. This trade represents a 1.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 now directly owns 121,152 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,026,263.04. The trade was a 18.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 43,000 shares of company stock valued at $4,630,310. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bridgewater Associates LP boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 122.7% during the 4th quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 460,936 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $42,577,000 after buying an additional 253,994 shares in the last quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV boosted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 284,243 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $26,750,000 after purchasing an additional 14,009 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board boosted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 54.6% during the 4th quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 37,051 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,422,000 after acquiring an additional 13,086 shares during the last quarter. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,699,000. Finally, Convergence Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. Convergence Investment Partners LLC now owns 68,447 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $6,322,000 after acquiring an additional 9,330 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company's stock.

Gilead Sciences Trading Down 1.8%

Gilead Sciences stock traded down $2.07 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $109.98. 8,148,740 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,744,306. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $105.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $102.26. Gilead Sciences has a 52 week low of $62.69 and a 52 week high of $119.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $136.81 billion, a PE ratio of 297.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.04. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 1.67% and a return on equity of 31.63%. The firm had revenue of $6.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.77 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted ($1.32) EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. Gilead Sciences's payout ratio is presently 66.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on GILD shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $80.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $110.55.

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.