Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD)

Key Points

• Unusual options activity: Traders bought 130,626 call options on Gilead, a roughly 1,013% increase versus the average daily call volume of 11,737, indicating heavy bullish positioning.
• Insider selling accelerated: Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares and CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 on Feb 17, and insiders have sold 309,280 shares over the last 90 days, leaving insiders with just 0.27% ownership.
• Dividend raised: Gilead increased its quarterly dividend to $0.82 (from $0.79) with an ex-dividend date of March 13 and payment on March 30, representing a $3.28 annualized payout (~2.3% yield).

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors purchased 130,626 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 1,013% compared to the average daily volume of 11,737 call options.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In other news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.44, for a total transaction of $4,324,320.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 120,288 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,577,278.72. The trade was a 18.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.43, for a total value of $463,290.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 167,779 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,910,110.97. The trade was a 1.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 309,280 shares of company stock valued at $43,935,470. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

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

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

NASDAQ:GILD traded down $0.80 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $145.20. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,436,780 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,448,737. Gilead Sciences has a 52-week low of $93.37 and a 52-week high of $157.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.55. The business's 50-day moving average is $139.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $126.44. The company has a market capitalization of $180.25 billion, a PE ratio of 21.45, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.37.

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

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is an increase from Gilead Sciences's previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Gilead Sciences's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on GILD. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $145.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. UBS Group increased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Argus raised their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $135.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $157.62.

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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