Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Shares Sold by Guardian Investment Management

Guardian Investment Management reduced its holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 21.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,900 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,650 shares during the period. Guardian Investment Management’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the second quarter worth $25,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Tompkins Financial Corp increased its position in Gilead Sciences by 223.1% during the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 349 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. 83.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

GILD traded down $0.57 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $66.36. 3,739,024 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,270,293. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $72.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $76.66. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.90 and a 12 month high of $87.86. The stock has a market cap of $82.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.04). Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 38.85% and a net margin of 20.89%. The firm had revenue of $7.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.67 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 6.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. This is a boost from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.64%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is currently 68.44%.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In related news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.96, for a total transaction of $145,920.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 96,304 shares in the company, valued at $7,026,339.84. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GILD has been the subject of several recent research reports. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $101.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $77.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 12th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $81.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $84.71.

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.