Johanna Mercier Sells 3,000 Shares of Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Stock

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) insider Johanna Mercier sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.31, for a total transaction of $372,930.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 103,221 shares in the company, valued at $12,831,402.51. The trade was a 2.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Johanna Mercier also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, December 15th, Johanna Mercier sold 3,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total transaction of $366,000.00.
• On Monday, November 17th, Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.86, for a total value of $3,524,080.00.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Gilead Sciences stock opened at $124.91 on Friday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a twelve month low of $91.68 and a twelve month high of $128.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company has a market capitalization of $154.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.37, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.33. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $123.36 and its 200 day moving average is $118.06.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.02 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.050-8.250 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $135.00 price target on shares of Gilead Sciences and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $100.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Gilead Sciences from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 3rd. HSBC boosted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Argus raised their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $133.16.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 1.6% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,364,226 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $13,233,912,000 after buying an additional 1,893,401 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 29,207,662 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,231,548,000 after purchasing an additional 727,515 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Gilead Sciences in the 2nd quarter worth $2,150,268,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 12.0% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,139,681 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,680,505,000 after purchasing an additional 1,618,453 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 18.2% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 10,467,411 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,167,221,000 after purchasing an additional 1,614,355 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

About Gilead Sciences

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.