Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Price Target Raised to $175.00

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) had its target price raised by HSBC from $155.00 to $175.00 in a research note released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. HSBC currently has a buy rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on GILD. Weiss Ratings cut Gilead Sciences from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Gilead Sciences from $166.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 27th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Maxim Group upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $165.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $158.78.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

Shares of Gilead Sciences stock opened at $143.72 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $178.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -53.83 and a beta of 0.33. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $138.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $136.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. Gilead Sciences has a 1-year low of $108.46 and a 1-year high of $157.29.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($6.75) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($7.25) by $0.50. The business had revenue of $7.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.40 billion. Gilead Sciences had a negative return on equity of 2.11% and a negative net margin of 10.64%.Gilead Sciences’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Gilead Sciences will post -0.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is -122.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Daniel O’Day sold 15,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.31, for a total value of $1,954,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 592,133 shares in the company, valued at $77,160,851.23. This trade represents a 2.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Andrew Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.36, for a total value of $415,080.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 165,646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,918,780.56. This represents a 1.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 105,000 shares of company stock valued at $14,495,820 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of GILD. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the second quarter worth $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 71.4% during the fourth quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 204 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Quattro Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

Gilead Sciences, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and commercializes medicines for serious and life-threatening diseases. The company’s research focuses primarily on virology, oncology, inflammation and related areas, with products serving patients in the United States and international markets.

Gilead is best known for its HIV treatments, including Biktarvy, Genvoya, Descovy and other antiretroviral therapies. Its portfolio also includes medicines for viral hepatitis, such as Epclusa and Vemlidy, and Veklury (remdesivir), an antiviral treatment for COVID-19.