Summary

  • Broker BofA upped its price target on GILD to US$95 and raised its rating on the stock to ‘buy’ from ‘neutral’.
  • EODHD/Others data suggests that Gilead has an average recommendation rating of 2.5 and a consensus price target of US$90.84.
  • As per BofA, Gilead’s strengths in the form of its portfolio and pipeline of drugs have not been fully acknowledged by investors.

Broker Bank of America upgraded its rating on pharmaceutical firm Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ: GILD). BofA upped the rating on GILD from ‘neutral’ to ‘buy’ leading to the stock’s price rising by 3.3% on September 8, 2023.

The broker also upped its price target on GILD to US$95 from US$88 as it sees inherent potential in the company’s financial performance.

As per EODHD/Others data, Gilead’s average recommendation rating on a scale of one to five is 2.5. Here, one depicts a ‘strong buy’ rating, while five stands for a ‘strong sell' rating. Meanwhile, GILD has an overall mean price target of US$90.84, which is an upside potential of 19.53% over GILD’s closing price on Friday.

GILD Price Chart; Image Source: GILD EODHD/Others

GILD closed at US$76 on Friday, September 8, 2023. The stock’s intraday gains for the day were 2.78% and its one-year gains were 16.42% as at the end of trade on September 8, 2023. The stock hit its 52-week high of US$89.74 in the previous year on December 13, 2022.

BofA sees strengths inGilead’s portfolio and pipeline of drugs

Brokerage upped its rating and price target on GILD as it sees strength in the form of Gilead’s portfolio and pipeline of drugs. The broker also stated that these strengths are “underappreciated by investors”.

BofA also applauded Gilead’s execution of its core HIV business as well as its emerging hematology/oncology franchise. Additionally, Gilead received an FDA approval for its HIV therapy Sunlenca in December.

As per BofA, the recent FDA approval is an “ideal backbone” for long-lasting treatment options. At the same time, BofA also stated that GILD shares are “oversold”.

Other brokers raise also raise their ratings on GILD

Brokers Truist Securities and Maxim Group raised their ratings on GILD to ‘buy’, while Oppenheimer & Co raised its rating to ‘outperform’. Brokers Evercore ISI and TD Cowen maintained their ‘outperform’ ratings on the stock.

Meanwhile, Gilead Sciences reported total revenue of US$6.6 billion in Q2 2023, which was 5% higher as compared to the previous corresponding period.

GILD’s diluted earnings per share decreased to US$0.83 in Q2 2023, as compared to US$0.91 in the previous corresponding period. As on June 30, 2023, Gilead had US$8 billion of cash, cash equivalents and debt securities.

The company expects total product sales between US$26.3 billion and US$26.7 billion for the full year 2023. Additionally, the company expects to report diluted earnings per share between US$4.5 and US$4.85 for the full year 2023.