Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Price Target Raised to $146.00 at Leerink Partners

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) had its target price increased by analysts at Leerink Partners from $114.00 to $146.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Leerink Partners’ price objective points to a potential upside of 2.85% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. UBS Group increased their target price on Gilead Sciences from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Wolfe Research boosted their price target on Gilead Sciences from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Scotiabank began coverage on Gilead Sciences in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Gilead Sciences from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Gilead Sciences presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $136.73.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of GILD opened at $141.95 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company has a 50-day moving average of $125.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $119.59. The stock has a market cap of $176.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.01, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.33. Gilead Sciences has a 12-month low of $93.37 and a 12-month high of $142.20.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $7.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.42 billion. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 51.86% and a net margin of 27.88%.The business’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.02 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Gilead Sciences will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Gilead Sciences

In other Gilead Sciences news, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.08, for a total transaction of $625,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 8,920 shares in the company, valued at $1,115,713.60. The trade was a 35.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.86, for a total transaction of $3,524,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 107,193 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,491,310.98. The trade was a 20.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 257,397 shares of company stock valued at $33,385,512 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Gilead Sciences

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sigma Planning Corp boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 47.5% during the 4th quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 28,061 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,444,000 after purchasing an additional 9,038 shares during the period. Cullinan Associates Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc. now owns 4,662 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $572,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 19,433 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,385,000 after acquiring an additional 1,538 shares during the last quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. increased its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 54.8% in the 4th quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 243 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 500.2% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 889,187 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $109,139,000 after purchasing an additional 741,044 shares during the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Gilead Sciences News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple sell?side firms raised targets and reiterated bullish ratings (Wolfe Research to $155/outperform; TD Cowen to $145/buy), reinforcing buy-side momentum and implied upside from current levels. Read More. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Broader analyst upgrades/positive notes from Citi, Truist, BMO and UBS add to consensus bullishness, supporting demand and higher valuation multiples. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Clinical/regulatory wins for Trodelvy (added to NCCN guidelines; TNBC approval/win coverage) strengthen Gilead’s oncology growth story and revenue optionality beyond antivirals. Read More. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage pieces noting that GILD has outperformed the market and is attracting analyst attention can draw momentum and ETF/quant flows into the stock. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Notes on GILD’s presence in Nasdaq/healthcare ETF lineups and elevated investor attention increase volume and liquidity but are not clear directional catalysts by themselves. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: CEO Daniel Patrick O’Day sold 10,000 shares (~$1.4M) at ~$139.89 (filed on Form 4). While modest relative to his remaining holding and potentially routine, insider sales can be interpreted negatively by some investors. Read More.

About Gilead Sciences

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.