Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on GILD. Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $170.00 to $167.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $157.00 to $156.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $166.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 27th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 target price on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Maxim Group raised Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $165.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Gilead Sciences currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $158.04.

Gilead Sciences Stock Down 0.2%

GILD opened at $150.99 on Friday. Gilead Sciences has a 12 month low of $108.46 and a 12 month 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 business’s 50-day moving average price is $136.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.52. The company has a market cap of $187.22 billion, a P/E ratio of -56.55 and a beta of 0.33.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($6.75) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($7.25) by $0.50. The company had revenue of $7.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.40 billion. Gilead Sciences had a negative return on equity of 2.11% and a negative net margin of 10.64%.Gilead Sciences’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.01 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Gilead Sciences will post -0.48 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Gilead Sciences news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.64, for a total transaction of $3,853,920.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 118,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,273,727.76. The trade was a 19.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Andrew Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.36, for a total value of $415,080.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 165,646 shares in the company, valued at $22,918,780.56. This trade represents a 1.78% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 105,000 shares of company stock valued at $14,495,820 over the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate 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. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 12,498.3% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 241,168,657 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $30,469,248,000 after acquiring an additional 239,254,365 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the second quarter worth about $15,393,785,000. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 60,240,518 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,393,921,000 after acquiring an additional 1,151,213 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 27,698,660 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,399,734,000 after purchasing an additional 1,195,269 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 23,121,620 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,837,948,000 after purchasing an additional 3,046,688 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Gilead Sciences

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

• Positive Sentiment: New HIV and oncology approvals broaden Gilead’s growth prospects. FDA approval of Bixlenvo, a once-daily single-tablet HIV regimen for virologically suppressed adults on complex treatments, could strengthen the company’s HIV franchise. Separately, European approval of Trodelvy plus Keytruda for certain first-line metastatic triple-negative breast cancer patients expands Gilead’s oncology opportunity. Commercial uptake will determine the ultimate revenue impact. HIV and oncology approvals article
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised long-term earnings expectations. Zacks Research increased its Q1 2028 EPS estimate to $2.15, Q2 2028 to $2.31 and FY2028 to $9.66, while maintaining a “Strong Buy” rating. The revisions suggest improving confidence in Gilead’s future profitability. Gilead analyst estimates
• Positive Sentiment: An Arcus-backed cancer study reached completion. The milestone sets up a potentially important immuno-oncology catalyst, although investors will likely need to wait for efficacy and safety data before assigning significant value to the program. Arcus-backed cancer trial article
• Neutral Sentiment: Gilead continues to support income investors with a $0.82 quarterly dividend. The $3.28 annualized payout provides shareholder support, but the high payout relative to reported earnings makes future dividend growth dependent on sustained HIV cash flow and successful new-product launches. Gilead dividend article
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Daniel O’Day sold $2.23 million of stock. The 15,000-share sale reduced his holdings by 2.53%, but it was completed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, limiting its value as a bearish signal. SEC insider trading filing
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about concentration and patent-expiration risk. Gilead’s dividend and cash generation depend heavily on its leading HIV franchise, particularly a blockbuster therapy facing a known patent expiration later in the next decade. The sharp decline in cell-therapy licensing deals also highlights uncertainty around diversification beyond HIV. Gilead dividend and patent risk article

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.