Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Maxim Group

Maxim Group lowered shares of Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Leerink Partnrs raised Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Leerink Partners raised Gilead Sciences from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $74.00 to $96.00 in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Thursday. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.71.

Gilead Sciences Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ GILD traded down $1.34 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $96.57. 7,457,030 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,289,753. The company has a market cap of $120.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1,072.94, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.17. Gilead Sciences has a one year low of $62.07 and a one year high of $98.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $85.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.03.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.44. The business had revenue of $7.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.01 billion. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 28.60% and a net margin of 0.45%. The business’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.29 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Gilead Sciences will post 3.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is 3,422.22%.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In related news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 25,590 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.50, for a total transaction of $2,341,485.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 99,599 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,113,308.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 29,357 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.78, for a total transaction of $2,459,529.46. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 78,127 shares in the company, valued at $6,545,480.06. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Merdad Parsey sold 25,590 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.50, for a total transaction of $2,341,485.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 99,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,113,308.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 62,437 shares of company stock worth $5,374,825 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Gilead Sciences

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the 1st quarter worth approximately $462,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 31.8% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 112,743 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $8,258,000 after purchasing an additional 27,211 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the 1st quarter worth $573,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 51.2% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 154,992 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $11,353,000 after buying an additional 52,494 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KCM Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 3.8% in the first quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,219 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $675,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

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.