Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Sets New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday after Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price target on the stock from $153.00 to $159.00. Rothschild & Co Redburn currently has a buy rating on the stock. Gilead Sciences traded as high as $129.17 and last traded at $129.2410, with a volume of 4156427 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $124.14.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Argus raised their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $151.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. HSBC boosted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $133.52.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kelly A. Kramer sold 2,805 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.10, for a total value of $356,515.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,339 shares in the company, valued at $170,186.90. This trade represents a 67.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 10,000 shares of Gilead Sciences 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 directly owned 566,698 shares in the company, valued at $70,740,911.34. This represents a 1.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 141,757 shares of company stock worth $17,569,112. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

More Gilead Sciences News

Here are the key news stories impacting Gilead Sciences this week:

• Positive Sentiment: NEJM published full Phase 3 ASCENT-04/KEYNOTE-D19 results showing Trodelvy® (sacituzumab govitecan) + Keytruda® met the primary endpoint with a 35% PFS improvement (HR 0.65), supporting the combination as a potential new first-line standard in PD-L1+ metastatic TNBC — a meaningful commercial upside for Gilead’s Trodelvy franchise. New England Journal of Medicine Publishes Phase 3 ASCENT-04/KEYNOTE-D19 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Rothschild & Co Redburn raised its GILD price target to $159 and kept a “buy” rating, signaling institutional confidence and providing upside thesis support to momentum traders and fundamental buyers. Rothschild & Co Redburn Adjusts Price Target on Gilead Sciences
• Positive Sentiment: Investor commentary highlights margin expansion and stronger free cash flow as underappreciated drivers for Gilead’s valuation, supporting buy-side interest beyond the clinical story. Gilead Sciences: Margin Expansion And Cash Flow Strength Underpriced
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary includes a valuation check after recent share-price softness — useful context for investors assessing whether the recent run is a buy-the-news move or a reset toward fair value. Gilead Sciences (GILD) Valuation Check After Recent Share Price Softness
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical/relative-strength pieces note improved momentum in GILD, which can attract momentum traders but doesn’t change fundamentals by itself. Stocks generating improved relative strength: Gilead Sciences
• Negative Sentiment: Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares (~$617.5k at $123.50) and reduced his stake by ~35.9% — an insider sale that may prompt investor questions about timing or tax/liquidity motives. SEC Filing — Form 4
• Negative Sentiment: RBC raised its target slightly to $103 but kept a “sector perform” rating — that target sits well below current levels and represents a cautious analyst view that could cap upside if other brokers follow suit. RBC Lifts Price Target on Gilead Sciences to $103

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GILD. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter worth $2,150,268,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 397.6% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,748,403 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $748,147,000 after buying an additional 5,392,191 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 33.5% during the second 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 in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Gilead Sciences by 164.4% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,489,062 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $387,286,000 after buying an additional 2,169,266 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 1.6% in 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $123.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $118.37. The company has a market capitalization of $160.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.02, 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 quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.45.

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

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is 48.99%.

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.