Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-nine brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $158.4074.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on GILD. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Gilead Sciences in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Gilead Sciences from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Leerink Partners lowered their price target on Gilead Sciences from $148.00 to $146.00 in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Daiwa Securities Group reduced their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $161.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $157.00 target price (up from $155.00) on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Friday, May 8th.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

Shares of Gilead Sciences stock opened at $125.19 on Thursday. Gilead Sciences has a 1-year low of $104.46 and a 1-year high of $157.29. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $130.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $134.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.97, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $155.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.06 and a beta of 0.31.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.12. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 30.99% and a return on equity of 48.19%. The company had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2026 guidance at -1.050–0.650 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Gilead Sciences will post -0.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is 44.69%.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.40, for a total transaction of $376,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 171,646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,524,408.40. This trade represents a 1.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.29, for a total value of $3,676,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 125,779 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,513,524.91. This represents a 18.21% 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 sold 68,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,930,150 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GILD. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,617,152,000. Boston Partners bought a new position in Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter worth about $517,808,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 3,763.8% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,223,304 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $518,368,000 after buying an additional 4,113,999 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 23,121,620 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,837,948,000 after acquiring an additional 3,046,688 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 121,097,336 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $14,863,487,000 after acquiring an additional 2,113,692 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

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.