High-rolling investors have positioned themselves bullish on Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD), and it's important for retail traders to take note.\This activity came to our attention today through Benzinga's tracking of publicly available options data. The identities of these investors are uncertain, but such a significant move in GILD often signals that someone has privileged information.

Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 9 options trades for Gilead Sciences. This is not a typical pattern.

The sentiment among these major traders is split, with 55% bullish and 33% bearish. Among all the options we identified, there was one put, amounting to $27,798, and 8 calls, totaling $322,062.

Expected Price Movements

Analyzing the Volume and Open Interest in these contracts, it seems that the big players have been eyeing a price window from $55.0 to $78.0 for Gilead Sciences during the past quarter.

Insights into Volume & Open Interest

In today's trading context, the average open interest for options of Gilead Sciences stands at 1447.83, with a total volume reaching 4,990.00. The accompanying chart delineates the progression of both call and put option volume and open interest for high-value trades in Gilead Sciences, situated within the strike price corridor from $55.0 to $78.0, throughout the last 30 days.

Gilead Sciences 30-Day Option Volume & Interest Snapshot

Noteworthy Options Activity:

About Gilead Sciences

Gilead Sciences develops and markets therapies to treat life-threatening infectious diseases, with the core of its portfolio focused on HIV and hepatitis B and C. The acquisitions of Corus Pharma, Myogen, CV Therapeutics, Arresto Biosciences, and Calistoga have broadened this focus to include pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Gilead's acquisition of Pharmasset brought rights to hepatitis C drug Sovaldi, which is also part of combination drug Harvoni, and the Kite, Forty Seven, and Immunomedics acquisitions boost Gilead's exposure to cell therapy and noncell therapy in oncology.

After a thorough review of the options trading surrounding Gilead Sciences, we move to examine the company in more detail. This includes an assessment of its current market status and performance.

Gilead Sciences's Current Market Status

• With a volume of 3,365,071, the price of GILD is up 2.73% at $75.51.
• RSI indicators hint that the underlying stock may be overbought.
• Next earnings are expected to be released in 14 days.

What Analysts Are Saying About Gilead Sciences

3 market experts have recently issued ratings for this stock, with a consensus target price of $79.0.

• An analyst from Raymond James upgraded its action to Outperform with a price target of $93.
• An analyst from Cantor Fitzgerald has decided to maintain their Neutral rating on Gilead Sciences, which currently sits at a price target of $70.
• Reflecting concerns, an analyst from RBC Capital lowers its rating to Sector Perform with a new price target of $74.

Trading options involves greater risks but also offers the potential for higher profits. Savvy traders mitigate these risks through ongoing education, strategic trade adjustments, utilizing various indicators, and staying attuned to market dynamics. Keep up with the latest options trades for Gilead Sciences with Benzinga Pro for real-time alerts.