Insider Selling: Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Director Sells 18,000 Shares of Stock

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Director Anthony Welters sold 18,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.62, for a total value of $2,675,160.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,916,306.28. The trade was a 58.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

GILD traded up $0.77 on Thursday, reaching $148.86. The company had a trading volume of 4,981,389 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,049,849. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $133.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $136.58. The company has a market cap of $184.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -55.75 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.27. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $108.46 and a 52-week high of $157.29.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($6.75) EPS 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 business had revenue of $7.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.01 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.5 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is currently -122.85%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GILD. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Gilead Sciences by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,887 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $477,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 7,724 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $948,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Davidson Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Davidson Trust Co. now owns 1,879 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 6,619 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $812,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venture Visionary Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 6,422 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $788,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Gilead Sciences

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

• Positive Sentiment: The U.S. FDA approved Bixlenvo, Gilead’s once-daily single-tablet HIV treatment combining bictegravir and lenacapavir. It is the first and only single-tablet regimen for virologically suppressed adults who are unable to use currently available single-tablet options, potentially expanding Gilead’s HIV product reach and simplifying treatment for patients on complex regimens. Reuters FDA approval article
• Positive Sentiment: Bixlenvo combines bictegravir, a key component of blockbuster Biktarvy, with lenacapavir, a strategic HIV treatment and prevention asset. The approval reinforces Gilead’s dominant HIV franchise and provides another potential source of longer-term growth. CNBC Bixlenvo approval article
• Positive Sentiment: The European Commission approved Trodelvy in combination with Keytruda for certain first-line metastatic triple-negative breast cancer patients. The expanded European indication strengthens Gilead’s oncology franchise and could broaden Trodelvy’s commercial opportunity. Yahoo Finance EU Trodelvy approval article
• Positive Sentiment: Investor commentary highlights continued optimism around Gilead’s HIV prevention medicines, including its long-term pre-exposure prophylaxis growth potential. Analysts and investors are increasingly viewing the HIV pipeline as an important catalyst beyond the company’s established products. Motley Fool HIV prevention catalyst article
• Neutral Sentiment: Gilead will present at healthcare investor conferences in September, potentially giving management an opportunity to provide updates on Bixlenvo, Trodelvy, HIV prevention programs and financial guidance. Gilead investor conference announcement
• Positive Sentiment: One valuation review describes Gilead as potentially undervalued despite its substantial five-year share-price gains, suggesting investors may still be underappreciating the company’s HIV and oncology fundamentals. Yahoo Finance Gilead valuation article

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on GILD. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Gilead Sciences from $166.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 27th. HSBC upgraded Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $133.00 to $155.00 in a report on Monday, July 6th. Daiwa Securities Group reduced their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $161.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Wall Street Zen raised Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Finally, Leerink Partners downgraded Gilead Sciences from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $146.00 to $127.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Twenty-four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $158.04.

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.