Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Shares Gap Up to $73.94

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $73.94, but opened at $76.12. Gilead Sciences shares last traded at $75.95, with a volume of 948,677 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on GILD shares. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $95.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 18th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 24th. HSBC began coverage on Gilead Sciences in a research report on Wednesday. They set a “reduce” rating and a $71.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 19th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $90.05.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $95.02 billion, a PE ratio of 17.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $77.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $79.06.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.64 by ($0.30). The firm had revenue of $6.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.45 billion. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 20.03% and a return on equity of 37.53%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.58 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 6.63 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 14th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is currently 68.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In other Gilead Sciences news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $400,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 107,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,606,960. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $400,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 107,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,606,960. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Merdad Parsey sold 1,485 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.90, for a total transaction of $114,196.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 29,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,261,013.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Altshuler Shaham Ltd raised its stake in Gilead Sciences by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 1,856 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the period. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 3.6% during the first quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,581 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $297,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Intercontinental Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Gilead Sciences by 2.4% during the second quarter. Intercontinental Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,458 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $421,000 after buying an additional 126 shares during the period. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,694 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $439,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pinkerton Retirement Specialists LLC boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Pinkerton Retirement Specialists LLC now owns 4,703 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $390,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the period. 82.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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, and Atripla products for the treatment of HIV/AIDS; Veklury, an injection for intravenous use, for the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019; and Epclusa, Harvoni, Vosevi, Vemlidy, and Viread for the treatment of viral hepatitis.