Oppenheimer Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) Stock

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) had its price target boosted by analysts at Oppenheimer from $95.00 to $105.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Oppenheimer’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 7.81% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $90.05.

Gilead Sciences Stock Up 6.2 %

GILD traded up $5.70 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $97.39. 11,215,278 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,028,672. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $84.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $74.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $121.25 billion, a PE ratio of 118.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.17. Gilead Sciences has a 1 year low of $62.07 and a 1 year high of $98.32.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.44. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 3.79% and a return on equity of 29.34%. The company had revenue of $7.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences will post 3.75 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In related news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 29,357 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 78,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,545,480.06. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Gilead Sciences news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.83, for a total value of $167,660.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 100,189 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,398,843.87. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 29,357 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.78, for a total value of $2,459,529.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 78,127 shares in the company, valued at $6,545,480.06. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 36,847 shares of company stock valued at $3,033,340 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Gilead Sciences

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 101.9% in the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 319 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 198.3% in the 2nd quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 358 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Cedar Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Gilead Sciences by 51.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. 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.