Citigroup Boosts Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Price Target to $140.00

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) had its price objective hoisted by investment analysts at Citigroup from $135.00 to $140.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Citigroup’s target price suggests a potential upside of 13.01% from the stock’s current price.

GILD has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Monday, November 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. HSBC raised their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Gilead Sciences from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on Gilead Sciences in a report on Wednesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $145.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.20.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

Shares of GILD stock traded up $2.53 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $123.89. 3,259,645 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,200,244. Gilead Sciences has a 52 week low of $88.57 and a 52 week high of $128.70. The stock has a market cap of $153.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.31. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $123.08 and its 200-day moving average is $117.34.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $7.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.42 billion. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 27.88% and a return on equity of 51.86%. Gilead Sciences’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.02 EPS. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.050-8.250 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total value of $366,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 153,503 shares in the company, valued at $18,727,366. The trade was a 1.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total value of $366,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 106,221 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,958,962. The trade was a 2.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 136,257 shares of company stock valued at $16,855,192 over the last 90 days. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Gilead Sciences in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,150,268,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 397.6% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,748,403 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $748,147,000 after acquiring an additional 5,392,191 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 33.5% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 13,521,228 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,499,098,000 after acquiring an additional 3,394,330 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 164.4% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,489,062 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $387,286,000 after purchasing an additional 2,169,266 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at $238,083,000. 83.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.