Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Reaches New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $145.00 to $155.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Gilead Sciences traded as high as $138.03 and last traded at $137.78, with a volume of 10011170 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $135.93.

GILD has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $135.00 price target on Gilead Sciences and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $134.52.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In other news, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 115,640 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total value of $15,611,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 566,698 shares in the company, valued at $76,504,230. This trade represents a 16.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.31, for a total value of $372,930.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 150,503 shares in the company, valued at $18,709,027.93. This represents a 1.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 247,397 shares of company stock worth $31,986,612 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 7,566.7% in the 2nd quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 230 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Corundum Trust Company INC purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Harbor Asset Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Financial Consulate Inc. lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 85.8% during the fourth quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. now owns 236 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 53.4% during the second quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC now owns 270 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.31. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $124.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $118.88. The company has a market cap of $170.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.33.

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. The business 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%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.02 EPS. 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.

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.