UP Strategic Wealth Investment Advisors LLC Invests $619,000 in Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

UP Strategic Wealth Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 4,700 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $619,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aviva PLC grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 1,156,738 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $141,978,000 after acquiring an additional 59,782 shares during the period. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth about $1,418,000. NBC Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 150.3% in the fourth quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 17,147 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,105,000 after buying an additional 10,296 shares during the last quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 66.5% during the fourth quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 105,740 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $12,978,000 after purchasing an additional 42,243 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 14.4% in the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 106,526 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $13,075,000 after buying an additional 13,385 shares during the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

GILD stock opened at $138.92 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $130.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $136.43. The company has a market capitalization of $172.25 billion, a P/E ratio of -52.03 and a beta of 0.32. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $108.46 and a fifty-two week high of $157.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($6.75) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($7.25) by $0.50. The business had revenue of $7.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.40 billion. Gilead Sciences had a negative net margin of 10.64% and a negative return on equity of 2.11%. The business’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.01 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is currently -122.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GILD has been the subject of several research reports. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Rothschild & Co Redburn decreased their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $170.00 to $167.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $166.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 27th. HSBC raised Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $133.00 to $155.00 in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Leerink Partners cut shares of Gilead Sciences from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $146.00 to $127.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Twenty-four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $158.04.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Gilead Sciences news, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.46, for a total transaction of $1,971,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 617,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $81,185,357.82. The trade was a 2.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.40, for a total transaction of $376,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 171,646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,524,408.40. This trade represents a 1.72% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 51,000 shares of company stock worth $6,568,860. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Gilead Sciences

Gilead Sciences, Inc, founded in 1987 and headquartered in Foster City, California, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of medicines in areas of high unmet medical need. The company initially built its reputation in antiviral therapies and has since expanded into oncology, cell therapy and inflammatory diseases. Gilead operates a global research and commercial organization, conducting clinical development and selling medicines in markets around the world.

Gilead’s product portfolio is anchored by antiviral therapies for HIV and viral hepatitis.