Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 17,740,000 shares, an increase of 7.6% from the October 15th total of 16,480,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 6,230,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Gilead Sciences Stock Up 0.1 %

Gilead Sciences stock traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $88.46. 9,099,602 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,110,947. Gilead Sciences has a one year low of $62.07 and a one year high of $98.90. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $86.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The company has a market cap of $110.24 billion, a PE ratio of 982.89, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.17.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.44. The company had revenue of $7.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.01 billion. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 29.00% and a net margin of 0.45%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.29 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences will post 4.38 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is 3,422.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GILD has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $81.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In other news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 29,357 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 78,127 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,545,480.06. This trade represents a 27.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.83, for a total transaction of $167,660.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 100,189 shares in the company, valued at $8,398,843.87. This represents a 1.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 56,947 shares of company stock valued at $4,968,674 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gilead Sciences

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,328,000. Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 0.8% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 12,414,268 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $851,743,000 after acquiring an additional 93,068 shares in the last quarter. IRON Financial LLC purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $830,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 13.1% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 286,116 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $19,630,000 after purchasing an additional 33,162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 127.6% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 213,901 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $15,668,000 after purchasing an additional 119,909 shares in the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.