Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Price Target Raised to $81.00

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) had its price objective increased by equities researchers at Royal Bank of Canada from $75.00 to $81.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “sector perform” rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s target price indicates a potential downside of 16.29% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on GILD. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 target price on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Leerink Partners upgraded Gilead Sciences from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $74.00 to $96.00 in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Gilead Sciences presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.71.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

GILD stock traded up $5.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $96.76. 6,401,537 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,010,009. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 0.95. Gilead Sciences has a 12-month low of $62.07 and a 12-month high of $98.31. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $84.58 and its 200 day moving average is $74.67. The company has a market cap of $120.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 118.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.17.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $7.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.01 billion. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 3.79% and a return on equity of 29.34%. Gilead Sciences’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.29 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Gilead Sciences will post 3.75 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In related news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 5,490 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.98, for a total transaction of $406,150.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 114,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,506,146.42. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s 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 owns 100,189 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,398,843.87. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 5,490 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.98, for a total transaction of $406,150.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 114,979 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,506,146.42. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 36,847 shares of company stock valued at $3,033,340 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GILD. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. raised its stake in Gilead Sciences by 198.3% in the second quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 358 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 101.9% during the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 319 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 51.6% during the second quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 83.67% of the stock is 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, 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.