Royal Bank of Canada Increases Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Price Target to $72.00

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) had its price objective boosted by stock analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $71.00 to $72.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “sector perform” rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s target price points to a potential downside of 2.25% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 29th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Friday. StockNews.com upgraded Gilead Sciences from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 27th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Gilead Sciences from $81.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $81.88.

Gilead Sciences Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:GILD traded down $1.93 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $73.66. 9,545,056 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,396,841. Gilead Sciences has a 12 month low of $62.07 and a 12 month high of $87.86. The company has a market cap of $91.77 billion, a PE ratio of 204.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $69.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $70.45.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.40. The firm had revenue of $6.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.64 billion. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 24.34% and a net margin of 1.76%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences will post 3.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In other Gilead Sciences news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.63, for a total value of $137,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 96,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,614,559.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of GILD. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. raised its stake in Gilead Sciences by 198.3% in the second quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 358 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Sachetta LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 83.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Gilead Sciences

Gilead Sciences, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines in the areas of unmet medical need in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company provides Biktarvy, Genvoya, Descovy, Odefsey, Truvada, Complera/ Eviplera, Stribild, Sunlencs, and Atripla products for the treatment of HIV/AIDS; Veklury, an injection for intravenous use, for the treatment of COVID-19; and Epclusa, Harvoni, Vemlidy, and Viread for the treatment of viral hepatitis.