Alta Wealth Advisors LLC Raises Holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Alta Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 3.4% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 12,438 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 411 shares during the period. Alta Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $1,394,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,789,254,000. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 21.6% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 40,319,432 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,724,306,000 after buying an additional 7,157,113 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 13,891.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,550,298 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $285,761,000 after acquiring an additional 2,532,070 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 14,915,095 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,377,707,000 after acquiring an additional 2,458,954 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at about $207,340,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:GILD opened at $107.62 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $133.87 billion, a PE ratio of 22.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.29. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $66.01 and a 1 year high of $119.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $106.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $103.15.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.77 billion. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 20.76% and a return on equity of 51.93%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($1.32) earnings per share. Analysts predict that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $132.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $110.55.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In related news, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.42, for a total transaction of $1,104,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 620,268 shares in the company, valued at approximately $68,489,992.56. This represents a 1.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.17, for a total transaction of $275,425.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 165,110 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,190,168.70. This represents a 1.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 48,500 shares of company stock worth $5,236,245. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

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.