Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on GILD. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $131.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Gilead Sciences to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.68.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GILD opened at $118.30 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $123.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $117.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $146.77 billion, a PE ratio of 18.34, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.31. Gilead Sciences has a 12 month low of $88.57 and a 12 month high of $128.70.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.31. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 51.86% and a net margin of 27.88%.The business had revenue of $7.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.02 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.050-8.250 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.99%.

Insider Activity

In other Gilead Sciences news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total transaction of $366,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 106,221 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,958,962. This trade represents a 2.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.83, for a total value of $1,248,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 566,698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $70,740,911.34. This trade represents a 1.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 136,257 shares of company stock valued at $16,855,192 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Anderson Hoagland & Co. acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,555,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 80,979 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $9,939,000 after acquiring an additional 2,163 shares during the last quarter. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC bought a new position in Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 63.9% during the fourth quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 377 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 93.0% during the fourth quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA now owns 14,129 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,734,000 after purchasing an additional 6,810 shares during the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.