Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Price Target Lowered to $166.00 at Morgan Stanley

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) had its target price reduced by Morgan Stanley from $168.00 to $166.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on GILD. Citigroup increased their target price on Gilead Sciences from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $122.00 to $120.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. HSBC raised shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $133.00 to $155.00 in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Leerink Partners dropped their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $148.00 to $146.00 in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Twenty-six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $159.04.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

GILD opened at $135.82 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $129.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $134.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $168.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.50 and a beta of 0.32. Gilead Sciences has a 12-month low of $107.75 and a 12-month high of $157.29.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.91 billion. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 30.99% and a return on equity of 48.19%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2026 guidance at -1.050–0.650 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences will post -0.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were given a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is 44.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.29, for a total transaction of $3,676,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 125,779 shares in the company, valued at $16,513,524.91. This represents a 18.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.40, for a total transaction of $376,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 171,646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,524,408.40. This trade represents a 1.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 83,000 shares of company stock worth $10,824,500. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 71.4% during the fourth quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 204 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Quattro Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 60.0% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 54.2% during the 1st quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC now owns 222 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is owned by 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.