Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Director Jeffrey Bluestone Sells 5,000 Shares

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.02, for a total transaction of $725,100.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 10,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,459,771.32. This represents a 33.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

NASDAQ:GILD opened at $146.12 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $181.18 billion, a PE ratio of -54.73 and a beta of 0.32. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $108.46 and a 1 year high of $157.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $131.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $136.59.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($6.75) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($7.25) by $0.50. Gilead Sciences had a negative net margin of 10.64% and a negative return on equity of 2.11%. The firm had revenue of $7.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.51 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is presently -122.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GILD has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded Gilead Sciences from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. 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. Leerink Partners downgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $146.00 to $127.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. HSBC upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $133.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $158.04.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC raised its position in Gilead Sciences by 71.4% in the fourth quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 204 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quattro Advisors LLC bought a new position in Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. 83.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.