Short Interest in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Decreases By 6.1%

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) was the target of a large drop in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 21,980,000 shares, a drop of 6.1% from the November 30th total of 23,410,000 shares. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 6,590,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Gilead Sciences Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of Gilead Sciences stock opened at $92.37 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $91.70 and a 200 day moving average of $82.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $115.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1,026.33, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.18. Gilead Sciences has a fifty-two week low of $62.07 and a fifty-two week high of $98.90.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released 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 return on equity of 29.00% and a net margin of 0.45%. The business had revenue of $7.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.29 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Gilead Sciences will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.33%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is currently 3,422.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on GILD shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $94.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $70.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Gilead Sciences in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 target price for the company. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $96.43.

Insider Transactions at Gilead Sciences

In other news, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 6,788 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.39, for a total transaction of $620,355.32. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 8,920 shares in the company, valued at $815,198.80. This trade represents a 43.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 8,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.96, for a total value of $781,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 132,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,173,021.08. The trade was a 6.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 453,734 shares of company stock valued at $41,902,086 in the last 90 days. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GILD. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the third quarter worth $25,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 101.9% during 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. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Gilead Sciences by 51.6% in the 2nd quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the third quarter worth about $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

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.