Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Price Target Raised to $75.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) had its target price boosted by Royal Bank of Canada from $74.00 to $75.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a sector perform rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a hold rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a neutral rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Monday, September 16th. Raymond James raised shares of Gilead Sciences from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and set a $93.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Gilead Sciences to a strong-buy rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an overweight rating and set a $95.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $82.12.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GILD traded up $0.42 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $84.59. The company had a trading volume of 4,054,354 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,221,453. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $79.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $71.93. The company has a market capitalization of $105.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 234.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Gilead Sciences has a 1 year low of $62.07 and a 1 year high of $87.86.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.40. The firm had revenue of $6.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.64 billion. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 3.79% and a return on equity of 29.34%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 855.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.83, for a total value of $167,660.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 100,189 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,398,843.87. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 29,357 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.78, for a total value of $2,459,529.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 78,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,545,480.06. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.83, for a total value of $167,660.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 100,189 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,398,843.87. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 36,847 shares of company stock valued at $3,033,340 over the last ninety days. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC now owns 11,130 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $902,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 19.1% in the 4th quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 7,436 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $602,000 after purchasing an additional 1,195 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 31.2% during the 4th quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 31,171 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,525,000 after acquiring an additional 7,411 shares during the last quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 86.1% during the fourth quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,288 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $428,000 after purchasing an additional 2,446 shares during the period. Finally, Morningstar Investment Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 124.9% during the 4th quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 15,191 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,233,000 after acquiring an additional 8,437 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

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.