Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Reaches New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $176.05 and last traded at $174.4720, with a volume of 12,628 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $174.48.

Trending Headlines about Gilead Sciences

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

• Positive Sentiment: New HIV-prevention data showed twice-yearly lenacapavir achieved nearly twice the one-year treatment persistence of daily oral F/TDF, a result that could support Gilead’s long-acting HIV-prevention strategy. Article: New Data Show Twice-Yearly Lenacapavir Achieved Nearly Twice the One-Year Persistence
• Positive Sentiment: In the Phase 3 IDEAL study, Livdelzi (seladelpar) achieved ALP normalization in about 75% of participants with primary biliary cholangitis. The results may strengthen its case for broader second-line use, although the stock reportedly fell following the update. Article: Gilead’s Livdelzi Achieves 75% ALP Normalization
• Positive Sentiment: Recent third-quarter results beat analyst estimates for earnings and revenue, and Gilead raised full-year product-sales guidance. The company also maintained its quarterly dividend at $0.82 per share. Article: Did Earnings Beat Just Shift Gilead Sciences’ Investment Narrative?
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Daniel O’Day sold more than 112,000 shares across November 4–5, but the transactions were conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. He retained 551,683 shares, which may temper concerns about the sales. SEC Form 4 filing

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GILD has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $184.00 target price on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $163.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Twenty-three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.15.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average is $153.04 and its 200-day moving average is $140.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.36. The company had revenue of $8.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.81 billion. Gilead Sciences had a negative net margin of 12.47% and a negative return on equity of 1.85%. Gilead Sciences’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.47 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -1.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 15th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is -103.80%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Daniel O’Day sold 102,619 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.16, for a total transaction of $17,974,744.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 551,683 shares in the company, valued at approximately $96,632,794.28. This trade represents a 15.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.02, for a total value of $725,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 10,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,459,771.32. This represents a 33.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 239,310 shares of company stock worth $38,945,617. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. PFS Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 101.1% in the third quarter. PFS Partners LLC now owns 191 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Finally, Toth Financial Advisory Corp lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 85.5% in the third quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 217 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

About Gilead Sciences

Gilead Sciences, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and commercializes medicines for serious diseases. Founded in 1987 and headquartered in Foster City, California, the company focuses on antiviral therapies, including treatments and preventive medicines for HIV and medicines for viral hepatitis. Its products include Biktarvy for HIV and Epclusa for hepatitis C.

Gilead also develops medicines in areas such as oncology and inflammatory diseases. Its portfolio includes Veklury (remdesivir), an antiviral medicine used to treat COVID-19.